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Davis

Davis, California

Monday, March 18, 2024

Davis Feminist Film Festival

14th annual festival to showcase intersectionality, feminist struggles

The 14th Annual Davis Feminist Film Festival will be held on Friday, May 24, at the Veterans Memorial Theater. The festival is hosted by the Women’s Resources and Research Center and will showcase over twenty domestic and international short films. The festival will also host an art show that will feature work from underrepresented community artists.

The festival aims to promote perspectives that are not usually visible in mainstream media. The films focus on social justice and raising consciousness about the intersections between socially constructed categories and how these intersections affect people’s lives.

“The festival curates a night for the Davis community where topics including race, women’s bodies and skin color are offered from women’s perspectives,” said Elizabeth Mercado, a second-year English major and the festival’s communications coordinator. “The amount of films we’ve chosen from other countries widens the conversation around feminism from just an American one. In my commitment with the festival this year I’ve witnessed from my fellow interns women supporting women’s stories. It’s validated my input as a Latina first-generation college student who’s gotten to see examples of women of color within the film industry.”

The first half of the festival will feature “2nd Class,” which focuses on how women of color persevere in the face of discrimination, xenophobia and white nationalism; “Stereotyped,” a humorous take on the narrow mindedness of Hollywood’s casting culture; “Little Lantern,” a story of rebellion, friendship and childhood; the romance “Arcana Six”; and “My Black” which focuses on young girls’ relationships with their skin color.

The second half of the festival will feature the emotional “2Faces,” which deals with domestic violence and “In the End,” a story about the disavowal of non-binary children. Further, audiences can expect the resilience of women to play out on screen in “Little Red Riding Hood,” “Can She Kill It” and “Mars 2025.” The final short film shown will be “Game,” which highlights women’s courage and perseverance in the face of inequality on the basketball court.

Carmen Valdivia, a Spanish and Portuguese Ph.D. candidate, is this year’s festival director.

“As a former undocumented immigrant from Peru, single mother and educator completing a Ph.D. at UC Davis, I consider that feminist perspectives, especially from marginalized knowledge bearers such as black, brown and indigenous communities, can and will be the sustaining and crucial forces to fight social injustice and also preserve the only home we have,” Valdivia said. “Working with an amazing group of diverse, young and talented women to make the DFFF possible reaffirms these beliefs, and I hope our audience feels and shares not only the intensity and urgency of doing feminist work, but also the inspiration and joy behind each story.”

The art show will be open for viewing starting at 4 p.m. Film viewing begins at 5 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the WRRC or at the door. There is a suggested donation of five dollars. The festival’s lineup is available on the festival’s official website and on Facebook.

Written by: Liz Jacobson — arts@theaggie.org

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