Over the course of two years, as they cope with loss and struggle to raise their families as single mothers, these extraordinary women dedicate themselves to empowering Afghan widows whose lives have been ravaged by decades of war, poverty and oppression – factors they consider to be the root causes of terrorism. As Susan and Patti make the courageous journey from their comfortable neighborhoods to the most desperate Afghan villages, they discover a powerful bond with each other, an unlikely kinship with widows halfway around the world, and a profound way to move beyond tragedy.

From the ruins of the World Trade Center to those of Kabul and back, theirs is a journey of personal strength and international reconciliation, and a testament to the vision that peace can be forged… one woman at a time.

Being shown at MFA screenings:

• Saturday March 1, noon
• Sunday, March 2, 10:30 am
• Thursday, March 6, noon
• Saturday, March 8, 12:30 pm
• Sunday, March 9, 11 am
• Saturday, March 22, 10:30 am
• Thursday, March 27, 3:30 pm

Stay tuned for this year’s spring conference, Making Media Now, to be held at Bentley College on its beautiful Waltham campus.

The theme this year is “The Art and Business of Filmmaking.” Workshops included:

* Documentary Financing: What Does the Future Hold?
* Finding Work in the Massachusetts Film Industry
* Story Structure: From Great to Excellent!
* Marketing Your Film for Engagement and Impact
* Music for Film 2.0
* Equity Financing Panel – Cutting Edge Ways of Gaining Equity Funding
* Incorporating Animation in your Feature or Documentary Film
* The Future of Documentary in the Age of Internet Video
* How to Perfect Your Pitch
* Pitch Panel

Speakers Included:

• Bonnie Abaunza – Vice President of Campaign Development & Operations, Participant Media
• Carol Atwood – CEO of Spartacus Media Enterprises
• Chris Boebel – Manager of Multimedia Development in the MIT Libraries
• Dan Cogan – Co-Founder and Executive Director of Impact Partners
• Jeanine Cowen – composer and Vice President, Curriculum Academic Affairs at Berklee College of Music
• Lisa Crafts – animator and painter
• Bill Elliott – teacher, arranger and orchestrator at Berklee College
• Sandra Forman – entertainment attorney
• Nettrice Gaskins – Computer Arts Academic Liaison at MassArt
• Marc L. Grubb – owner and chief technologist of fusion IT
• Ryan Harrington – Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund
• Robin Hobart -visual effects artist at Brickyard VFX
• Artemis A.W. Joukowsky, III – a venture capitalist, asset advisor, entrepreneur, non-profit activist and film producer
• Scott Karambis – Partner and Director of Strategy at MECHANICA, a brand strategy company
• Scott Kirsner – journalist for Variety and The Boston Globe on technology issues and author
• Alla Kovgan – filmmaker
• Lyda Kuth – Executive Director of the LEF Foundation
• Cynthia López – Vice President for American Documentary/P.O.V
• Suzanne Lyons – BAFTA award-winning co-founder of Snowfall Films, Inc
• Scott Masterson – filmmaker
• Robb Moss – filmmaker and professor at Harvard University
• Chris O’Donnell – Business Manager for IATSE Local 481, which represents over 600 motion picture technicians and crafts people in five New England states
• Nicholas Paleologos – Executive Director of The Massachusetts Film Office
• Bryan Papciak and Jeff Sias – animators at Handcranked Productions and professors at Rhode Island School of Design
• Alison Plante – Director of Audio Production at the Center for Digital Imaging Arts at Boston University
• Tom Phillips – composer
• William C. Rogers – director, producer and writer of numerous films and screenplays
• Fernanda Rossi – “The Documentary Doctor”
• Slava Rubin – co-founder of IndieGoGo
• Ellen Stanley – leads communication efforts for National Geographic Films
• David Tamés – filmmaker and media technologist
• Roland Tec – writer, director and composer
• Tim Van Patten – manager of Central Booking Service
• Judith Vecchione – Executive Producer, WGBH
• Kathryn Washington – program manager for the Diversity Development Fund (DDF) at ITVS
• Anne Zeiser – founder and CEO of Azure Media

Sponsored by: