A THOUSAND GIRLS LIKE ME

DIRECTOR: Sahra Mani   COUNTRY: Frankreich, Afghanistan   YEAR: 2018   LANGUAGE: Farsi   SUBTITLES: Englisch   RUNNING TIME: 80 min

SCREENING WITH Q&A WITH DIRECTOR SAHRA MANI

SYNOPSIS
A THOUSAND GIRLS LIKE ME is an awe-inspiring vérité documentary that tells the story of a young Afghan woman’s brave fight to seek justice and protect her children after experiencing years of abuse at the hands of her father Khatera Golzad’s father physically and sexually abused her for more than thirteen years, and after several aborted pregnancies, she gave birth to a daughter and a son. Despite her many attempts to file charges, neither the Afghan police nor the legal system helped her. In 2014, she appeared on national television to publicly accuse her father, finally succeeding in bringing her case to court despite threats from male relatives and judges who labelled her a liar.
Shedding light on the broken Afghan judicial system and the women it seldom protects, A THOUSAND GIRLS LIKE ME is the story of one woman’s battle against cultural, familial, and legal pressures as she embarks on a mission to set a positive example for her daughter and other girls like her.
In a country where the systematic abuse of girls is rarely discussed, Afghan filmmaker Sahra Mani’s film is ultimately a story of bravery, love, hope and resilience.

Director’s Statement
Every woman in this country has a hundred owners. Fathers, brothers, uncles, neighbors. They all believe they have the right to speak on our behalf and make decisions for us. That’s why our stories are never heard, but buried with us.

WEBSITE
https://athousandgirlslike.me/

SAHRA MANI

Sahra Mani grew up as an Afghan refugee in Iran. She studied Documentary at the University of the Arts in London. She is founder of the Afghanistan Doc House and Anahat Vision and Films production company. In her work, she focuses on the political structures of her home country. Sahra Mani won the NIHRFF Audience Award 2019 with A THOUSAND GIRLS LIKE ME.

FILMOGRAPHY
Kaloo School (2012), Beyond The Burkha (2014), A Thousand Girls Like Me (2018)

SCRIPT: Sahra Mani PRODUCER: Sahra Mani   CINEMATOGRAPHY: Sahra Mani EDITOR: Giles Gardner

CONTACTS
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Afghanistan Doc House   WORLD SALES: First Hand Films