Meet the Filmmakers

An exclusive opportunity to meet the filmmakers and commissioning organizations for the films featured in the Women Deliver 2019 Conference Film Festival.

Harnessing the Power of Data for Gender Equality: Presenting EM2030 2019 SDG Gender Index

Launch of the EM2030 2019 SDG Gender Index and Plan International’s Taking the Lead Report

Candid Conversation

What is the role of gender equality in climate justice?

Host: Shahira Amin, Independent Journalist
- Farwiza Farhan, Forest, Nature & Environment Aceh (HAkA)
- Fleur Newman, Gender Affairs Officer, United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

Film Screenings: Mental Health

Not Carol (15:00)
> On the afternoon of May 20, 2014, cries of terror shattered the quiet of West 223rd Street in Torrance, CA, when Rudy Coronado entered his bedroom to find that his bloodied wife had just stabbed their three daughters - Sophia, (2 1⁄2 years), Yazmine (1 1⁄2 years) and Xenia (10 weeks) - killing them all. Thirty-year old Carol Coronado, a beautiful young mother, committed the most unspeakable crime that afternoon, and her acts – although despicable – represent the extreme result of undiagnosed postpartum psychosis. NOT CAROL examines the scourge of postpartum psychosis through the tragic prism of the Carol Coronado murder case. In a judicial system riddled with archaic laws and chronic misunderstanding, Carol’s story shines a light on a public health epidemic that is enormous in scale and no one is talking about. Director(s): Eamon Harrington and John Watkin

Doubts (3:14)
> "Don't believe everything you think." DOUBTS, a poem by Julie Flanders with animation by Phoebe Cavise, is both a light and serious reminder to believe in something better than your uncertainties. Conveyed with love and whimsy this short film is meant to shift and elevate the spirit of the viewer. A seamless marriage of word and image, DOUBTS is a philosophical amuse-bouche designed to please the mind and delight the senses.

Vicarious Resilience Trailer (2:48)
> The documentary follows three Hudson Valley residents over the course of a 10-week TMI Project storytelling workshop presented at The Mental Health Association in Ulster County (MHA). Along the way, the participants experience the transformative power of true storytelling; they face mental illness, childhood neglect and addiction head-on; and, ultimately, share deeply personal stories about love, loss and triumph. Director(s): Eva Tenuto

God Knows Where I Am Trailer (2:16)
> The body of a homeless woman is found in an abandoned farmhouse, and a diary documenting a journey of starvation and the loss of sanity lies next to the body. For nearly four months, Linda Bishop, a prisoner of her own mind, survived on apples and rain water during one of the coldest winters on record. As her story unfolds from different perspectives, we learn about our systemic failure to protect those who cannot protect themselves. Director(s): Todd Wider and Jeb Wider

Hope Trailer (1:00)
> Based on a true story. When a widow with mental illness attempts suicide, she survives only to find herself homeless and unable to reconnect with her son. After a year of living in a shelter with no hope of overcoming her situation, she has a chance encounter that changes her life. Director(s): Katie Damien

Take a Deep Breathe (4:27)
> This is a short animation about a day of a woman who lives alone. In this day she wakes up in the morning and goes to kitchen for making breakfast. After hearing bad news about a girl (who has died because of violation) in radio, she remembers her bad experiences about the rape of her privacy. She remembers how some men look at her just sexually. She is afraid to go out but finally changes her mind and decides to go out again and be brave. Director(s): Zahra Safdari Shadloo

Youth Zone

Film Screenings: Gender Violence

Hinge (22:50)
> When a mentally unstable man stops taking his antipsychotic medication his new neighbors, a lesbian couple with an idyllic life, become the target of his fixation. Director(s): Lisa Ann Mayo

Unsafe in the City (1:29)
> This film was produced to support the launch of Plan International's new report, Unsafe in the City, which was based on more than 21,000 online reports from girls and young women living in Delhi, Kampala, Lima, Madrid and Sydney. Keeping all girls identities anonymous the idea was to use a serene piece of classical music to calm your senses and then use the horrific quotes to illustrate the lived realities of girls. Director(s): Rachael Chilton

Innovation Ecosystem Panel

As part of this fast-paced intergenerational dialogue, leaders from across sectors will share insights on the #PowerOf innovation to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG5 (gender equality).

Smart Investment: Using Data to Make the Case and Track Commitments

Organized by: Data2X, Groots, Guttmacher Institute

Data and evidence have the power to highlight needed investments, set priorities for limited resources, and hold decision-makers accountable on commitments. This rapid-fire session will present examples of how data are used to build a case for investment, to prioritize scarce resources, and to monitor investments. Participants will learn how data was used to make a cost-savings case for adolescent sexual and reproductive health, and to track family planning investments and impact.

Beyond the Pilot: Scaling Up What Works in Adolescent Sexuality Education, Contraception, and Maternal Health

Organized by: Jhpiego, The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, White Ribbon Alliance, World Health Organization

Pregnancy and childbirth complications are the leading cause of death among girls aged 15-19 years globally. Young mothers who survive, face high risks of serious health conditions such as eclampsia, endometriosis, infections and depression. Yet many adolescents are still unaware of or discouraged from obtaining contraception. This session will share solutions to scale up sexual and reproductive health information and services for adolescents, including engaging young people in program design and implementation. Come learn how we can shift mind-sets and beliefs around contraception.

Taking to the Streets, Prevailing in the Courts: Demanding the Right to Safe Abortion!

Organized by: Center for Reproductive Rights, International Planned Parenthood Federation, Ipas

Advocates around the world are bravely demanding their right to abortion. Mobilization on the ground in countries and communities- and critical victories in the courts- have catalyzed legislative action. Yet challenges remain. In this session, recent examples from Argentina, Ireland, and Kenya will explore the legal strategies advocates are mobilizing to demand the right to safe abortion.

Looking at Innovation and Technology Through a Gender Lens

Organized by: Grand Challenges, MIT Solve, Skoll Foundation

We all understand the world through by lens through which we experience it. That’s why it’s so important that engineers, designers, and technologists—who are increasingly powerful and influential in shaping the world around us—are diverse and representative of many perspectives. In this session, hear stories and explore solutions of how looking through a gender lens informs approaches to innovation and technology, and reshapes the world around us.

Unleashing the Power of Women Entrepreneurs

Organized by: Echoing Green, WEConnect International

Why do women still own very few of the world’s assets? Why do women too often focus on low-profit business? Why are women business owners invisible in global value chains? And what do we do to change this? This session will focus on innovative ways to work together across sectors to implement policies and programs that help women start and grow businesses. Learn how to build an ecosystem of support for women-owned businesses that can deliver innovation, jobs, wealth, and strong communities.

Money Talks: What Works in Budget Accountability?

Organized by: Equal Measures 2030, Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH), White Ribbon Alliance

Is money really following political commitments on gender equality? What are the most promising budget accountability efforts and the biggest stumbling blocks? How are governments promoting transparency and accountability? How can advocates and others work to ensure implementation of gender equality commitments? In this session, join in the interactive discussion, share your experiences, and learn from others.

Financial Education: Building Skills for Economic Empowerment

Organized by: International Development Research Centre, Pro Mujer

This session takes a deeper look at the skills gaps related to financial education, as well as entrepreneurial training and workforce development—critical themes for building for economic empowerment among women. Panelists will examine the challenges women face beyond access to finance, including the digital divide, access to critical resources and training, jobs and market access. Come hear about solutions including training, access to jobs and markets to that foster economic independence for women.

How To Build and Sustain a Social Movement

Organized by: Global Fund for Women, International Women’s Health Coalition

Movements are powerful drivers of change. When they are organized, coordinated, and strategic, movements can shift public opinion, spur legal and policy reform, and hold decision-makers accountable. Yet the work of movement building is often insufficiently valued and resourced. This session is for everyone who wants to learn about strategies for organizing, strengthening, and funding movements.

Integration Matters: Advancing the Lives of Girls and Women through Holistic Programming

Organized by: Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Deliver for Good, Global Partnership for Education

The evidence is clear: investing in girls and women in one area has a ripple effect on others, for example investing in water and sanitation in schools may help girls stay in school longer, and learn more. However, working together and integrating programs across sectors is not always easy. In this session, participants will engage in a facilitated dialogue to gain inspiration and proof of why integration is worthwhile, how to keep results for girls and women at the center of their work.

Sponsored Session: Empower. Listen. Act: How Women Demand Quality Health Care

Sponsored by: Merck for Mothers

Education is key to ensuring access to quality health care. Health education in particular empowers women and increases their ability to seek out and advocate for the life-saving care they need. This session will explore the many different, innovative ways to reach women and empower them to access quality health care, including through digital platforms, coalitions and their communities.

Getting It Right: Family Planning and HIV Services

Organized by: Family Planning 2020, FHI 360, UNFPA

While there has been increased commitment to strengthen linkages between HIV and SRHR, insufficient headway has been made. Important upcoming studies will help us better understand the interaction between hormonal contraception and HIV acquisition. How can these sectors work together to prevent unintended pregnancy and HIV and ensure rights-based care?

How Advertisers and Advocates are Dismantling Gender Stereotypes in Media

Organized by: Global Citizen, Global Press Institute, Lisa Russell Films/Create 2030, RNW Media

Marketing and digital media agencies create the thousands of advertisements seen in every country every day — images which influence the way we perceive girls and women, for better or worse. This session will show how advertising and media can challenge gender stereotypes and biases, change people’s perceptions of ‘others,’ and reduce discrimination. Participants will learn what levers push top brands to stop perpetuating negative stereotypes, and how storytelling is used to change hearts and
minds.

Devex at WD2019

What's next for the world's children? What's driving the improved standard of living for children and adolescents across the developing — and developed — world? With the recent releases of “The Business of Changing the World” and Save the Children's 2019 Global Childhood report, Devex President and Editor-in-Chief Raj Kumar hosts Save the Children President Carolyn Miles for a conversation exploring the policies, innovations, and actors advancing youth development.