| Salma (90 min) India |
[watch trailer] [buy tickets] |
Director/Producer: Kim Longinotto
Description:
When Salma, a young Muslim girl in a South Indian village was 13 years old, her family locked her up for 25 years, forbidding her to study and forcing her into marriage. During that time, words were Salma's salvation. Covertly composing poems on scraps of paper and, through an intricate system, Salma was able to sneak them out of the house, eventually getting them into the hands of a publisher. Against the odds, Salma became the most famous Tamil poet: the first step to discovering her own freedom and challenging the traditions and code of conduct in her village. Salma has hopes for a different life for the next generation of girls, but as she has experienced first hand, familial ties run deep, and change happens very slowly.
Biography:
Kim Longinotto studied camera and directing at England's National Film School, where she made Pride of Place, a critical look at her boarding school, and Theatre Girls, a film documenting a hostel for homeless women. Her first film set in Japan was Eat the Kimpno, about the controversial feminist performer Hanayagi Genshu. Kim's other films include Hidden Faces about Egyptian women, The Good Wife of Tokyo, explores women, love and marriage, Dream Girls, a Japanese musical theatre company, the Tararazuka revue, Shinjuku Boys, three Tokyo women who live as men, Rock Wives, partners of rock stars, Divorce Iranian Style, women and divorce in Iran, Best Friends series on Channel 4: Steve & Dave, two friends who work as a drag act, Rob & Chris about two homeless young men, Gaea Girls, a young girl's struggle to become a professional wrestler, Runaway, a refuge for girls in Tehran, The Day I Will Never Forget, young girls in Kenya and female circumcision, Sister in Law set in Kumba, Cameroon, Hold Me Tight, Let Me Go, a school for disturbed children, Rough Aunties, a group of brave women based in Durban and Pink Saris is set in Uttar Pradesh.
Contact Information:
WMM
e: kf@wmm.com
w: www.wmm.com/salma
