The eighth-annual Family of Woman Film Festival begins Monday in Sun Valley. Three new documentaries will be shown throughout the week, all centered around the theme "women and their dreams."
Peggy Elliott Goldwyn founded the film festival in 2008. Goldwyn — who has deep connections to Hollywood and the indie film world — says she started the multi-day event with a feminist mission.
"I thought it was the best way to tell people of the problems that are faced by women and girls," says Goldwyn, "and why it's important to find solutions by telling powerful personal stories."
She says by bringing documentaries about women striving for dreams in difficult situations around the globe, she hopes people will leave the films inspired. Goldwyn says the message isn't just one of women's rights — but of human rights.
"The stories we show do show people dealing with difficult circumstances, problems that maybe universally won't be solved overnight but there are people out there doing things. There are heroes and heroines everywhere, and there are steps being taken forward. I believe there's a ripple effect."
One of the films that will be shown is "The Supreme Price," a documentary about Hafsat Abiola, a Nigerian-born woman whose father ran for president of Nigeria in the 1990s.
Abiola's father was arrested and her mother was assassinated for their pro-democracy efforts. Today, she is continuing her parents' legacy as an activist fighting for human rights in the face of Boko Haram's terrorist activities in Nigeria. She will be in Sun Valley Thursday to talk about her experience.
The Family of Woman Film Festival has partnered with Boise State to bring two of the documentaries to Boise, on Feb. 25 and Feb. 27. To see the schedule and more information about the three documentaries, click here.
Find Frankie Barnhill on Twitter @FABarnhill
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