Women of the lens film festival
2024 programme
Empowering through knowledge and celebration
| A girl tries her best to master love through her artistic expression of cooking. She learns quickly as she keeps making mistakes. For her, making the perfect dish and finding love is an act of service to herself that she is relentlessly achieving. This micro-short film is based on West African, Sierra Leone/British women who love to cook. |
Amina
1min 34s (not rated)
Director: Christie Fewry
| Ciberneticas presents the paths traced by powerful girls who contribute to the world to become more humane and less unequal through technological innovation. A manifesto-film for the increase of the female presence in the world of technology, impacting social, economic and cultural development. |
Ciberneticas
52min 17s (not rated)
Director: Graziela Mantoanelli
| When tragedy strikes, a spirited young woman turns to wild swimming in search of answers. By swimming each day at dawn and forming an unlikely friendship, she learns to accept her grief and the grief of those around her. |
Fifty Four Days
17min 20sec (not rated)
Director: Cat White and Phoebe Torrance
| Siblings Max and Julie discover something about their grandmother as they empty her house after she died. The discovery leads them to meeting the people that made up her world and how complicated she was. |
Lost & Found
19min 13s (not rated)
Director: Erica Miller
| As a child, little Alya is the only survivor of a tragic Mediterranean crossing from Africa to Europe. Many years later, as an astronaut of an important lunar mission, Alya loses communication with her base. She is confronted with her past trauma, and now Mångata – “the road to the moon”, which already saved her life once, will help her again. |
Mangata
15min 38s (not rated)
Director: Maja Costa
| This film explores the diverse filmmaking work and generous leadership style of award-winning Kenyan female filmmaker Judy Kibinge, who is also the Executive Founder and Creative Director of Docubox, an organisation that has transformed filmmaking cultures in East Africa over the past decade. |
Out Of The Box: The Screen Worlds Of Judy Kibinge
Out Of The Box: The Screen Worlds Of Judy Kibinge
1hr 21min 12s (not rated)
Director: Lindiwe Dovey
| Women who are in their 70s, 80s and 90s today, have lived through and been part of some of the most pivotal moments in women’s social history. They were young and fearless at times of dramatic societal change, political upheaval and personal danger, as well as the births of movements that pushed forward the rights of women like never before. |
Fearless
1hr 11min 11s (not rated)
Director: Noella Letitia Mingo
| Medusa is ruminating in her bedroom, recounting the events that occurred at Athena’s party. During the party Poseidon assaults Medusa. When she discloses this to Athena their friendship takes a sorrowful turn. The emotions and betrayal that arises, birth the legend of Medusa. |
The Myth
12min 12s (not rated)
Director: Rebecca Stephens
| When a global pandemic threatens to jeopardise an impending deal, and their manager goes off sick, work colleagues Kayla and Mark are tasked with completing the Lennox Report. Spending time together online, their friendship deepens and Kayla begins to question some of the other relationships in her life. |
The Lennox Report
34min 42s (not rated)
Director: Steve Bright & Amanda Bright
| Sarah and Martin seek a new housemate to move into their spare room. They conduct 23 interviews with a game of scrabble on the go, each word placed being inspired by the quirky odd balls they encounter. |
Vacant
14m (not rated)
Director: Aggie Nyagari
| A broke and frustrated IT technician decides to embark on a one woman heist to steal valuable data worth millions on the black market. |
The Pay Day
1hr 32min (BBFC rating 12)
Director: Sam Bradford
| Whilst spending the summer in New Orleans with her Manbo Aunt, BR finds herself in the spiritual family culture that her own mom desperately tried to keep her from. |
Vodou
17min 34s (not rated)
Director: Demi Anais
| A young mother struggles to keep her head above water as she navigates motherhood, her neurodivergent toddler, and the gritty Atlanta nightclub where she works. All on a quarter tank of gas. |
Skettel
13min 5s (not rated)
Director: Moon Lee Ferguson
Film Strands
Heritage Healing Heroines
This film strand explores the intricate lives of women across generations, delving into the personal, social, and emotional journeys that define them. Through three distinct narratives, we witness how the past shapes the present, how loss can inspire growth, and how individual courage becomes a cornerstone of collective progress.
Visions Through Resilience and Revolution
Shining a spotlight on women who are reshaping the world through storytelling, science, and technology, this is a strand where each film reflects the power of leadership, resilience, and the transformative influence of women across diverse fields—from filmmaking to space exploration to technological innovation. Together, they highlight the strength and imagination of women who break boundaries, transcend adversity, and drive change in ways that impact generations.
Creative Connections That Deliver Warm Bonds
An eclectic selection, this collection of films delves into the complexities of relationships—romantic, platonic, and professional. Each story highlights the ways in which human bonds are formed, tested, and redefined in everyday life and offer a heartwarming and playful look at how creativity—whether through food, work, or games—can be a conduit for connection, self-discovery, and new beginnings.
Being On The Edge: Survival, Spirit, With Rebirth
Here begins a complex variety of women navigating the turbulent waters of survival, identity, and personal transformation. This strand bring to light the struggles and triumphs of women who, whether through hardship, heritage, or myth, are pushed to their limits and must carve out new paths for themselves.
Women Of The Lens
Experience Heart-Warming Stories
about Us
Women Of The Lens was created to reveal the complexity, diversity and multiplicities of black women and women of colour. We’ll work with productions to change perceptions and practice.