Short film initiative 16 Days 16 Films reveals finalists and jury members

The annual short film initiative 16 Days 16 Films has announced its 16 finalist films and jury members for the 2022 edition. This short film competition platforms female filmmakers and their films, which explore, emote, and educate on all forms of violence against women.

Inspired by the UN Women campaign 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence, the initiative will run online from 25 November to 10 December 2022, between the International Day for Elimination of Violence Against Women and International Human Rights Day.

For every one of the 16 Days of the campaign (25 November – 10 December), one finalist film will be screened on the online platform: 16 Days, 16 Films. These films will remain available to view until mid-December

The 16 Days 16 Films initiative is presented by founding directors Johanna von Fischer and Ginta Gelvan, with the support of UK Says No More.

“We are excited to present this year’s finalists of 16 Days 16 Films and feel honoured to welcome an extraordinary jury who have given their time to choose our winners,” said von Fischer and Gelvan. “We are proud to champion female filmmakers and their urgent stories in these challenging times. With the last two years bringing a highly visible international conversation about sexual and domestic violence to the fore, we hope we can continue to shout louder and reach further than ever, to help raise a deeper awareness of the issues raised and support a much needed cultural shift.”

 “We created this annual competition to celebrate the vital role that female filmmakers play in changing the societal narrative towards domestic abuse and sexual violence. These films amplify powerful truth, exploring the complex realities of violence that women and girls endure every day. We hope these films ignite conversation and mobilise action to support specialist organisations to increase pathways for survivors to access specialist support, safely.”  Sarah D’Angelis, UK SAYS NO MORE Programme Manager

 16 finalists have been chosen from hundreds of submissions from the UK, Ireland, France, Italy Mexico, and the United States. All films are directed by a female-identifying filmmaker, are 25 minutes or under, and speak powerfully to the many forms which gender-based violence and inequality and discrimination can take.

The catalytic effect of Roe V Wade’s reversal earlier this year, alongside the alarming increase in femicides in countries including Mexico and France and recent protests in Iran, have shown how precarious women’s rights are on a global scale. Filmmakers, now more than ever, are needed to use their platform to create safe spaces for open discussion on these difficult issues around gender-equality.

An independent jury will be responsible for choosing the winning filmmaker and two runners up and the winners will be announced on 15 December. The first-place winner will also receive the opportunity to create a new public service announcement for UK Says No More, a national campaign focused on raising awareness and preventing domestic abuse and sexual violence in the UK.

This year’s independent jury includes an array of individuals from various creative and socio-political backgrounds, including social impact adviser and co-founder of Karp Randel and No More Jane Randel; advocate and activist with Beyond Equality Ben Hurst; filmmaker and co-editor of feminist film journal Another Gaze Dorothy Allen Pickard; educator, activist, author, director, producer and chief communications officer at A Call To Men Kimya Motley; film producer Uzma Hasan (Creature); actor and writer Eva Birthistle (Bad Sisters); model, actor and founder of the non-profit organisation Gurls Talk, which promotes the mental health and wellbeing of adolescent girls and young women, Adwoa Aboah (Top Boy); and actor Emma Appleton (Everything I Know About Love).

This year’s 16 Days 16 Films finalists are:

Before Dawn, Kabul Time (US) 14:30 – Tara Motamedi

Bertie Mi Ha Scritto Una Poesia (IT) 15:00 – Vittoria Rizzardi Peñalosa

Bruise (IR) 15:13 – Mo O’Connell

Candy (UK) 13:50 – Sarah Grant

Entitled (US) 10:00 – Kelsey Fordham

Hair Uncovered (UK) 11:46 – Cathy Heffernan

Home Safe (UK) 7:02 – Ellie Hodgetts, Aymeric Nicolet

Honesty (UK) 8:40 – Roxy Rezvany

Lola (FR) 15:00 – Silvia Staderoli

Malevolence (UK) 3:26 – Eugenia Hamilton

Morgane (FR) 2:20 – Lilou Massouty

Nice to Meet You All (UK) 11:47 – Guen Murroni

The Violence Between Us (UK) 24:54 – Camila Guerreiro

They Will Not Silence Our Voices (MX) 18:20 – Yennué Zárate Valderrama

Visceral (FR) 2:30 – Alexandra Mignien

Whale (IR) 7:30 – Lorna Fitzsimons