In Development

Producer: Linda Harrar

Born Female – The Stories Women Don’t Tell will be a 90-minute documentary feature and television film on women’s reproductive health and human rights. Comprised of eight stories, each filmed in a different country around the world by award-winning female directors, these intimate story vignettes will create a powerful global portrait of the often life-threatening consequences of gender inequality that women face every day – from a young mother struggling to give birth safely in India, to a child bride in Yemen who is seeking a divorce, to a young rural woman in Colombia, already the mother of four, who is seeking access to family planning and refuge from domestic violence.

The film will also tell the inspiring stories of those striving for social justice for women – from a social entrepreneur working to help adolescent girls stay in school, to an Ethiopian physician working to stop the practice of female genital cutting (FGC) of adolescent girls.

A high-profile celebrity will host the film, and help to promote it. Different language versions will be created for Africa, Asia, Latin America, as well as North America and Europe, and a culturally appropriate celebrity host will present the film in each region.

Much as Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth did for climate change, The Stories Women Don’t Tell will galvanize a worldwide dialogue about reproductive justice and gender inequality, inspiring a demand for change in policy priorities for women and girls. The modular design of the film enables it to be broadcast later as a two-hour television special, and re-purposed for educational and live-group discussions. An ambitious social impact campaign designed by Meredith Blake, who was instrumental in creating the campaign for An Inconvenient Truth, will accompany the film, targeting two groups for activist training: young women 18-30 to organize events on college campuses, and women over 40 who are members of book clubs, to organize activist activities throughout their communities, in religious, professional and social club settings. The producers will work with the Communications Consortium Media Center on national and international political advocacy. Evaluation and metrics will be built in to ensure measurable impact. Born Female – The Stories Women Don’t Tell will empower its audiences to become engaged in the fight for gender equity. A companion web site will offer podcasts, as well as downloadable tools for effective action, and links to other resources and groups.

UN Special Envoy Stephen Lewis has said, “I challenge you to enter the fray against gender inequality. There is no more honorable or productive calling. There is nothing of greater import. All roads lead from women to social change.”

Born Female – The Stories Women Don’t Tell has taken up this challenge.