rePRO Film Fest has announced its 2021 lineup. Now in its second edition, rePRO is the only festival in the world dedicated to reproductive justice and advocates for “women’s (cis, trans, and non-binary inclusive) reproductive health care, justice, and bodily autonomy,” a press release notes. One-hundred percent of all titles screening this year are directed by individuals using she/her pronouns and 67 percent are helmed by BIPOC or AAPI individuals.
Leah Galant and Maya Cueva’s “On the Divide” and Celina Escher’s “Fly So Far” are among the features in this year’s program. The former is a documentary exploring three Latinx people’s weaving stories related to the last abortion clinic on the U.S/Mexico border and the latter is a documentary portrait of Teodora Vásquez, who was accused of killing her own baby after suffering a miscarriage.
Other programming includes rePRO’s Call-to-Action Conversations, a series of discussions with filmmakers, activists, and experts focused on reproductive justice, and a pre-festival virtual happy hour with singer, activist, and “Women of Tomorrow” podcaster Laura Bell Bundy.
The recipient of this year’s ChangemakeHER Award, given to an individual “who has dedicated their career to inspiring advocacy and awareness in a wholly unique way,” is Jonelle Procope, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Apollo Theater in New York City. Under her leadership, “the Apollo has remained steadfast in its commitment to meeting the needs of its community while standing firm in what it has always been — a beacon for Black artists and contemporary culture, and a catalyst for social and civic advocacy,” the press release details.
“As we enter our second edition of rePRO Film Fest, we celebrate that for the first time in history our second-in-command has a uterus, but also recognize the threat to women’s bodily autonomy remains constant — both around the world and here in the U.S.,” said fest founders Mallory Martin, Lela Meadow-Conner, and Debby Samples. “Storytelling — especially film — is an incredible entry point into dialogue and discourse around reproductive justice. All too often, these issues become politicized and the women* behind these lived experiences are forgotten. We are thankful to the filmmakers who are brave enough to tell these stories and are also excited to highlight our three beneficiary organizations who are on the ground, doing the good work. We’re honored to have the opportunity to connect them all with audiences across the country.”
rePRO Film Fest takes place August 9-18. Head over to the fest’s website to check out the complete program and purchase tickets. All ticket proceeds will be evenly split and donated to three reproductive rights non-profit beneficiaries.
