By Vicki A. Lee and Kara Headley
2021 marks the 40th year since the early seeds of Women’s History Month were sown. In 1981, Congress passed Public Law 97-28 to request the President designate the week of March 7, 1982, as Women’s History Week. Continuous joint resolutions in the next five years led to the inaugural Women’s History Month in 1987.
Every March since then has been 31 days of honoring women who made strides in their professional fields, as well as gender equality and social justice. Women’s History Month is a chance to pay tribute to the women, from all intersections of identity, who laid the foundation for opportunities we enjoy today. It is a celebratory but also humbling time that reminds us how indebted we are to the activists and everyday women of the past and present — and how much more work needs to be done in order for all women to enjoy full equity.
This month, we’re recognizing the modern women who continue to shatter barriers in film as directors, writers, and actors, who bring previously untold stories to the big screen. We give thanks to all the women in the industry who act as templates for the next generation of filmmakers who want to carve out their own space in the canon.
March kicks off with Jessie Barr’s “Sophie Jones” (March 2), a film based on true events about a 16-year-old mourning the sudden passing of her mother. Another coming-of-age story is Amy Poehler’s “Moxie” (March 3), which depicts the DIY power of one teen girl armed with the printed word: the titular zine that launches a revolution in her high school.
The animated Disney pic “Raya and the Last Dragon” (March 5) also focuses on a young woman leading the charge for change. Set in a world where humans and dragons once lived together peacefully, the film sees a warrior, Raya (Kelly Marie Tran), trying to find the last living dragon and restore harmony to her heavily-divided home.
Featuring footage captured throughout the ’90s, Soleil Moon Frye’s “kid 90” (March 12) is an intimate portrait of young people who grow up in the public eye as child stars. Frye — best known for playing the titular role on “Punky Brewster” — tells her own story, and that of her peers, in the film.
Finally, the documentary “The People vs. Agent Orange” (March 5) highlights women who are making the world a better place. Co-directed by Kate Taverna, it follows two activists holding corporations accountable for the environmental and humanitarian devastations made by the toxic defoliant Agent Orange.
Here are the women-centric, women-directed, and women-written films debuting in March. All descriptions are from press materials unless otherwise noted.
March 1
“The Stylist” – Directed by Jill Gevargizian; Written by Jill Gevargizian, Eric Havens, and Eric Stolze (Available on ARROW)
We all dream of being someone else but for Claire (Najarra Townsend), that dream goes from an obsession to a living nightmare. Hairstylist by day, serial killer and collector of scalps by night, Claire’s lonely existence is thrown into turmoil when her regular client, Olivia (Brea Grant), asks her to style her hair for her wedding day. Increasingly fixated on Olivia’s seemingly flawless life, Claire vows to lock up her scalp collection and change her ways for good — only to discover that repressing your deadly desires is easier said than done.
March 2
“Sophie Jones” – Directed by Jessie Barr; Written by Jessie Barr and Jessica Barr (Available in Virtual Cinemas and on VOD)
“Sophie Jones”
Inspired by true experiences of grief, girlhood, and growing up, Jessie Barr’s “Sophie Jones” provides a stirring portrait of a 16-year-old. Stunned by the untimely death of her mother and struggling with the myriad challenges of teendom, Sophie (Jessica Barr) tries everything she can to feel something again, while holding herself together, in this sensitive, acutely realized, and utterly relatable coming-of-age story.
“The Orphanage” – Written and Directed by Shahrbanoo Sadat (Available on Amazon Prime Video)
“The Orphanage” follows the life of one of the children seen in “Wolf and Sheep,” Qodrat (Qodratollah Qadiri). Set in the 1980s, 15-year-old Qodrat lives in the streets of Kabul selling movie tickets on the black market by day and watching films by night. When he is caught selling tickets, the police place him in a Soviet orphanage. Qodrat’s love of Bollywood films soon infiltrates his daydreams as a buffer for his considerably more dangerous real-life situation. As the political situation during the Russian occupation of 1989 begins to change, Qodrat and his friends try to find ways to defend their home.
“Undertow” – Written and Directed by Miranda Nation (Available on VOD)
“Undertow” is the story of two women whose lives become dangerously enmeshed. Grieving the loss of her stillborn baby, Claire (Laura Gordon) meets pregnant teenager Angie (Olivia DeJonge). Feisty and irrepressible, Angie challenges Claire’s careful control. Drawn into Angie’s world, Claire develops a dangerous obsession that risks both of their lives. Only when Claire is confronted with the terrible secret behind Angie’s pregnancy can both women begin to heal.
“Dementer” (Available on VOD)
The film follows Katie (Katie Groshong), a young woman who flees a backwoods cult and takes a job at a care center for special needs adults in her determination to do some good with her life. But despite her best intentions, Katie can’t escape the signs that “the devils” are coming for Stephanie (Stephanie Kinkle), a woman with Down syndrome she cares for, who keeps getting sicker despite Katie’s rituals to ward off evil spirits.
March 3
“Moxie” – Directed by Amy Poehler; Written by Tamara Chestna and Dylan Meyer (Available on Netflix)
“Moxie”: Colleen Hayes/Netflix
Vivian (Hadley Robinson), a seemingly shy 16-year-old, has always preferred to keep her head down and fly under the radar. But when the arrival of a new student (Alycia Pascual-Peña) forces her to examine the unchecked behavior of her fellow high school students, Vivian realizes she’s fed up. She anonymously publishes an underground zine called “Moxie” to expose bias and wrongdoing in her high school, and unexpectedly sparks a movement. Now at the center of a revolution, Vivian begins to forge new friendships with other young women and allies, reaching across the divide of cliques and clubs as they learn to navigate the highs and lows of high school together.
March 4
“Lucky” – Directed by Natasha Kermani; Written by Brea Grant (Available on Shudder)
Life takes a sudden turn for May (Brea Grant), a popular self-help book author, when she finds herself the target of a mysterious man with murderous intentions. Every night without fail he comes after her, and every day the people around her barely seem to notice. With no one to turn to, May is pushed to her limits and must take matters into her own hands to survive and to regain control of her life.
March 5
“Raya and the Last Dragon” – Written by Adele Lim and Qui Nguyen (In Theaters and Available for Rent on Disney+)
“Raya and the Last Dragon”
“Raya and the Last Dragon” takes us on an exciting, epic journey to the fantasy world of Kumandra, where humans and dragons lived together long ago in harmony. But when an evil force threatened the land, the dragons sacrificed themselves to save humanity. Now, 500 years later, that same evil has returned and it’s up to a lone warrior, Raya (Kelly Marie Tran), to track down the legendary last dragon to restore the fractured land and its divided people. However, along her journey, she’ll learn that it’ll take more than a dragon to save the world — it’s going to take trust and teamwork as well.
“Quo Vadis, Aida?” – Written and Directed by Jasmila Žbanić (In Theaters; Available on VOD March 15)
Bosnia, July 11, 1995. Aida (Jasna Djuricic) is a translator for the United Nations in the small town of Srebrenica. When the Serbian army takes over the town, her family is among the thousands of citizens looking for shelter in the UN camp. As an insider to the negotiations, Aida has access to crucial information that she needs to interpret. What is at the horizon for her family and people — rescue or death? Which move should she take?
“My Salinger Year” (In Theaters and Available on VOD)
“My Salinger Year”
New York in the ‘90s: after leaving graduate school to pursue her dream of becoming a writer, Joanna (Margaret Qualley) gets hired as an assistant to Margaret (Sigourney Weaver), the stoic and old-fashioned literary agent of J. D. Salinger. Her main task is processing Salinger’s voluminous fan mail, but as she reads the heart-wrenching letters from around the world, she becomes reluctant to send the agency’s impersonal standard letter and impulsively begins personalizing the responses. The results are both humorous and moving, as Joanna, while using the great writer’s voice, begins to discover her own.
“Pixie” (In Theaters and Available on VOD)
On a path to avenge her mother’s death, Pixie Hardy (Olivia Cooke) attempts a heist that will give her the means to leave her small town life behind. When the plan goes horribly wrong she’s forced to team up with a pair of misfits who are clearly in over their heads. On the run from an organized gang – criminal priests and nuns, led by Father McGrath (Alec Baldwin) – the trio will scheme and swindle anyone they come across in this hilarious and thrilling adventure.
“The People vs. Agent Orange” (Documentary) – Directed by Kate Taverna and Alan Adelson (Available in Virtual Cinemas)
“The People vs. Agent Orange”
A primary chemical of the toxic defoliant Agent Orange wreaks havoc on the human genome, causing deformed births and deadly cancers. After decades of struggle and tragic personal losses, two heroic women are leading a worldwide movement to end the plague and hold the manufacturers accountable. In France, Tran To Nga is suing the American chemical industry for poisoning her in Vietnam. In America, Carol Van Strum exposes the continuing use of toxic herbicides in the Pacific Northwest. Incriminating documents disappear. Activists are threatened. A helicopter technician secretly films the contamination of reservoirs, while a massive industrial cover-up goes on.
“Lost Course” (Documentary) – Directed by Jill Li (Available in Virtual Cinemas)
Wukan, a fishing village in Guangdong province in South China, became international news in 2011 when local people rose up en masse against local administrators involved in the illegal sale of land in communal ownership. For her debut film, Jill Li won the trust of protesters from the village. She followed them closely as they fought for justice for six years, during which time the hope they placed in a new, fair village council, and their loyalty to the central government in Beijing, ultimately made way for disillusionment.
“Stray” (Documentary) – Directed by Elizabeth Lo (Available in Virtual Cinemas and on VOD)
“Stray”
“Stray” explores what it means to live as a being without status or security, following three strays as they embark on inconspicuous journeys through Turkish society. Zeytin, fiercely independent, embarks on adventures through the city at night; Nazar, nurturing and protective, easily befriends the humans around her; while Kartal, a shy puppy living on the outskirts of a construction site, finds companions in the security guards who care for her. The strays’ disparate lives intersect when they each form intimate bonds with a group of young Syrians with whom they share the streets.
“F.T.A.” (Documentary) (Re-Release) – Directed by Francine Parker (Available in Virtual Cinemas)
In 1971, at the height of the Vietnam War, Jane Fonda, Donald Sutherland, and fellow performers mounted the F.T.A. musical comedy tour across Southeast Asia as a response to Bob Hope’s USO tour. They redubbed the original Army recruitment slogan “Fun, Travel, Adventure” to “Free The Army or F*** The Army.” After the Army tried to limit the troops’ access to performances, it became known as “The Show the Pentagon Couldn’t Stop!” Despite being highly controversial, the show was a huge success amongst enlisted men and women, many of whom appear in the film expressing their disillusionment with war, imperialism, and racism.
“Rosa Luxemburg” (Re-Release) – Written and Directed by Margarethe von Trotta (Available in Virtual Cinemas)
“Rosa Luxemburg”
Margarethe von Trotta’s 1986 portrait of the Polish-born Marxist revolutionary and internationalist follows her years with the too-moderate-for-her German Social Democratic Party, her fiery opposition to the first World War, and her creation of the Spartacus League, the later German Communist Party.
“The Affair” (Available on VOD)
In 1930s Czechoslovakia, newlyweds Viktor (Claes Bang) and Liesel Landauer (Hanna Alström) are filled with optimism and happiness in their new home. But all too soon, extramarital temptations bring out their darkest secrets and desires. As Liesel turns to her sensual friend Hana (Carice van Houten) for the passion she lacks in her marriage, Nazi troops enter the country, threatening the Landauers’ lives and the burning desire between the two women.
“Son” (In Theaters and Available on VOD)
After a mysterious group of individuals breaks into Laura’s (Andi Matichak) home and attempts to steal her eight-year-old son, David (Luke David Blumm), the two of them flee town in search of safety. But soon after the failed kidnapping, David becomes extremely ill, suffering from increasingly sporadic psychosis and convulsions. Following her maternal instincts to save him, Laura commits unspeakable acts to keep him alive but soon, she must decide how far she is willing to go to save her son.
“Sentinelle” (Available on Netflix)
Transferred home after a traumatizing combat mission, a highly trained French soldier (Olga Kurylenko) uses her lethal skills to hunt down the man who hurt her sister.
March 8
“Bombay Rose” – Written and Directed by Gitanjali Rao (Available on Netflix)
“Bombay Rose”
Escaping from child marriage, a young club dancer living in the streets of Bombay must choose between fending for her family and finding love with a boy orphaned by the militancy. Painted frame by frame and woven delicately through music, a red rose brings together three tales of impossible loves. Love between two dreamers tested by duty and religious divides. Love between two women. Love of an entire city for its Bollywood stars. Based on true events, the film, in documentary fashion, explores the ruthlessness of a society where the love and life that reigns on the big screen can crush you in its mean streets.
“Underplayed” (Documentary) – Directed by Stacey Lee (Available on Amazon Prime Video)
“Underplayed”
Electronic music was born from the ideals of diversity, community, and inclusivity; yet in 2019 only seven percent of Billboard’s Top 100 DJs were women. They make up less than three percent of production and technical roles in the music industry. For women of color, it’s less than 0.3 percent. Filmed over the summer festival season, “Underplayed” presents a portrait of the current status of the gender, ethnic, and sexual equality issues through the lens of the female pioneers, next-generation artists, and industry leaders who are championing the change, and inspiring a more diverse pool of role models for future generations.
“Rain Beau’s End” – Directed by Tracy Wren; Written by Jennifer Cooney (Available on Lesflicks)
Progressive lesbian couple Hannah Driver (Janelle Snow) and Jules Paradise (Amanda Powell) adopt a child named Beau (A. Kraus) who is subsequently diagnosed with 47, XYY — which was believed at that time to make boys more prone to aggressive behavior, and has since been disproved. The couple ride the rough journey of Beau’s apparent behavioral issues, and how it not only affects his life and the small community they inhabit but markedly their relationship and their lives. As Beau gets older, and research of his condition grows, Hannah and Jules must face the reality of a self-fulfilling prophecy and the ghosts of their past.
March 12
“kid 90” (Documentary) – Directed by Soleil Moon Frye (Available on Hulu)
“kid 90”
As a teenager in the ’90s, Soleil Moon Frye carried a video camera everywhere she went. She documented hundreds of hours of footage and then locked it away for over 20 years. After all this time, “kid 90” unlocks the vault and presents a true time capsule of a group of friends growing up in Hollywood and New York City in the ’90s, balancing childhood and fame pre-internet and social media explosion. It is a deeply personal coming-of-age story that explores how “sometimes we need to look back to find our way forward.” Frye is joined by lifelong friends and fellow child stars who provide commentary on growing up in the ’90s including David Arquette, Stephen Dorff, Balthazar Getty, Mark-Paul Gosselaar, Brian Austin Green, Tori Leonard, Heather McComb, and more.
“Insight” – Directed by Livi Zheng and Ken Zheng (Available on VOD)
Jian (Ken Zheng) is a counter terrorism agent who blends his skills as a martial artist and clairvoyant to bring the world’s most nefarious individuals to justice. This lone wolf is is forced to make an unexpected detour to Los Angeles upon receipt of the devastating news of a cover up surrounding his brother’s alleged suicide. With the reluctant help of LAPD detectives Abby (Madeline Zima), Carl (Tony Todd), and Captain Duke (Keith David), the unlikely group become involved in the investigation. Jian and Abby fight against a high-tech criminal (Sean Patrick Flanery) looking to exploit the brothers’ gifts in his own quest to power.
“Trust” – Written by Kristen Lazarian, K.S. Bruce, and Brian DeCubellis (In Theaters and Available on VOD)
In New York City, art gallery owner Brooke (Victoria Justice), and her husband, Owen (Matthew Daddario), seem to have it all. When Brooke signs a new artist — a devastatingly handsome painter with an affinity for married women — the attraction between them is unmistakable. Left alone at home as Brooke and her artist travel to Paris, Owen finds comfort at a bar with a seductive and beautiful journalist (Katherine McNamara). On once unshakable footing, Brooke and Owen’s trust begins to dissolve as they unwittingly push the other toward the very thing they fear most.
“Come True” (In Theaters and Available on VOD)
High school student Sarah (Julia Sarah Stone) is at her lowest point yet when she runs away from home and finds herself with no one to rely on and struggling with recurring nightmares. She chances upon a university sleep study that offers the promise of safety and money and brings her an unexpected friend and confidant in the overseeing scientist (Landon Liboiron). But there’s something curious about the proceedings and being under observation seems to make Sarah’s disturbing dreams even worse. As the darkness begins to close in, it’s soon clear that Sarah has unknowingly become the conduit to a horrifying, new discovery.
March 16
“Jumbo” – Written and Directed by Zoé Wittock (Available on VOD)
“Jumbo”
Jeanne (Noémie Merlant), a shy young woman, lives at home with her uninhibited bartender mother and works the graveyard shift as a cleaner at an amusement park. Her mother wants her to meet a man, but Jeanne prefers tinkering in her bedroom with wires, light bulbs, and spare parts, creating miniature versions of theme park rides. During her late-night shifts she begins spending intimate time with the alluring new Tilt-A-Whirl ride that she decides to call Jumbo. Finding herself seduced by “his” red lights, smooth chrome, and oily hydraulics, Jeanne concludes that the thrilling new relationship she wants to pursue is with Jumbo.
“Martha: A Picture Story” (Documentary) – Directed by Selina Miles (Available on VOD)
“Martha: A Picture Story”
Martha Cooper is an American photojournalist who became the first female staff photographer for the New York Post during the 1970s, later becoming best known for documenting the New York City graffiti scene of the 1970s and 1980s. Selina Miles’ affectionate tribute to Cooper in “Martha: A Picture Story” journeys viewers from her beginnings, snapping shots on a solo motorcycle trip through east Asia in 1963 at the age of 20, to today, an influential icon to the global movement of street artists.
March 18
“Groomed” (Documentary) – Directed by Gwen van de Pas (Available on Discovery+)
“Groomed” is the devastatingly powerful story of filmmaker Gwen van de Pas as she returns to her hometown in search of answers about the man who sexually abused her as a child. To understand her ongoing traumas, Gwen travels to meet survivors, psychologists, and even a convicted sex offender. “Groomed” addresses a common yet little understood manipulation type called “grooming,” how to recognize it, and how to stop it. What begins as an exploration into grooming becomes a dramatic journey where Gwen faces unexpected revelations in her case, finally finds her anger, and boldly confronts the evil we’d rather ignore.
March 19
“Phobias” (Anthology) – Directed by Camilla Belle, Maritte Lee Go, Jess Varley, Joe Sill, and Chris von Hoffmann; Written by Camilla Belle, Maritte Lee Go, Jess Varley, Broderick Engelhard, Joe Sill, and Chris von Hoffmann (In Theaters and Available on VOD)
Five dangerous patients, suffering from extreme phobias at a government testing facility, are put to the ultimate test under the supervision of a crazed doctor and his quest to weaponize fear.
“Dark State” – Written and Directed by Tracy Lucca (In Theaters)
An investigative reporter must choose between helping expose the truth or accepting that the world is ruled by a global network of ruthless insiders determined to wield power over all of mankind in a coming Dark State.
March 23
“The Incredible 25th Year of Mitzi Bearclaw” – Written and Directed by Shelley Niro (Available on VOD)
“The Incredible 25th Year of Mitzi Bearclaw”
After Mitzi Bearclaw (Morningstar Angeline), a 25-year-old Indigenous woman that loves fashion design, receives news that her mother is ill, she moves back to her isolated reservation in southwestern Canada to help her father care for their family. Over the span of one year, she reconnects with her parents, reignites a relationship with an old flame, and faces enemies from her childhood. The film showcases Mitzi’s story month by month and jumps between her real life and a dream-like place she goes to connect with her spirit guides. To move forward and discover what matters most, Mitzi reconnects with her roots and faces the enemies of her past.
March 25
“Violation” – Written and Directed by Madeleine Sims-Fewer and Dusty Mancinelli (Available on Shudder)
“Violation”
With her marriage about to implode, Miriam (Madeleine Sims-Fewer) returns to her hometown to seek solace in the comfort of her younger sister and brother-in-law. But one evening a tiny slip in judgement leads to a catastrophic betrayal, leaving Miriam shocked, reeling, and furious. Believing her only recourse is to exact revenge, Miriam takes extreme action, but the price of retribution is high, and she is not prepared for the toll it takes as she begins to emotionally and psychologically unravel.
March 26
“A Tale of Springtime” (Re-Release) (Available in Virtual Cinemas)
“A Tale of Springtime”
Jeanne (Anne Teyssedre), a high school philosophy instructor, meets Natacha (Florence Darel) at a party. They become friends, and soon Jeanne, who shares an apartment in Paris with her messy boyfriend, is staying at Natacha’s while her father (Hugues Quester), a middling French bureaucrat, is out of town. Very quickly, Jeanne realizes Natacha has something to hide — and when her father comes home and discovers her in his flat, unacknowledged desires come to the forefront.
