“It is important to train women in film-making. No doubt that the art of making film empowers women. Beginning of a workshop, I observed a young Muslim girl, who was very shy to talk; reluctant to express her ideas and finding it difficult to confidently articulate her thoughts. However, when she was involved in filmmaking, I found her to be one of the exceptional talents in the team to provide art direction support. She could amazingly draw storyboard. She had a unique ability to convert entire script to pictures. She organized the filming setting very creatively. Towards the end of the training, she was very confidently making suggestions and ideas”.  Sumudu Malalgama, a short film director and a producer shared her observation after completing a four-day training workshop for female film-makers at Batticaloa.

The Centre for Media and Information Literacy (CMIL) conducted two mobile short film trainings in Jaffna (24-27 November) and Batticaloa (1-4 December) to build the capacity of 50 young female short filmmakers (26 from North and 24 from the East) to use smartphones to produce compelling short films, addressing various human rights issues affecting women living in marginalized settings.

The trainings are organized under the initiative “Film for Equality” and designed to enhance the capacity of the young women to use smartphones to produce compelling short films, capturing the lived reality of women in marginalized setting, and specifically focusing on how their human rights are systemically violated.

Addressing GBV

During both trainings, the young girls learned how produce short film to address issues such as economic inequality, GBV, climate injustice, digital misogyny, a lack of gender-responsive, political and civic participation through mobile-based short film making. The girls from Jaffna made a practice film on sexual harassment where they discussed how young women are trapped by officials of the corporate and state institutions. Viewing the film, those girls maintained that a culture of zero tolerance is needed to eliminate sexual harassment.

The girls collectively affirmed that fear of sexual harassment discourages women from discovering their own potential; achieving their goals and fulfilling their aspirations. Thanushiya, a young filmmaker and university graduate said “short film in Jaffna society has created a greater awareness amongst the young people on the rights of the LGBTQ community and the young girls. However, creating a culture of respect and recognition is a lifelong challenge”. She further said that “when girls remain in silence, it becomes extremely hard to create constant recognition for equality. 

They learned how to shoot and edit video using freely available mobile applications such as Kinemaster™.  Each participant went through an individualized training on developing emotionally powerful characters, story ideas, and converting them into meaningful films reflecting the voice of women.

Breaking Silence

“It is extremely vital for the women to break their silence against Gender-based Violence (GBV) and Human Rights violations and continue to challenge the systemic oppressions against women and young girls. One of the most effective ways to make this happen is to empower women to produce critical narratives articulating their lived realities” said Ayesha Chathurangi, Lecturer at University of the Visual and Performing Arts.

She made this point amongst young women short filmmakers from the Northern Province. When Ayesha said that the majority of women are in greater silence against GBV, almost all the women in attendance endorsed it; many complemented her statement with their personal stories.

Substantiating Ayesha’s statement, the majority of girls from the Northern Province said sexual bribery, sexual harassment on public transport, gender-based discrimination, cyber-misogyny, and denying access to the public sphere, are some of the issues that they face in their daily life. Yet most of the women do not speak out loud about their lived experience, in seeking justice.

Rights to Safe Abortion

The girls from the Eastern province made two exercises films focusing on the right to marital consent of girls and right to safe abortion. Young girls were given the opportunity to contribute to the story development where they shared their personal experience in crafting their script.  Ms. Keshayini Edmond, a participant and short film maker directed the short film about the right to safe abortion which highlighted stigma around the safe abortion. Young girls indicated that some fathers and families dismantle the right of girls to choose a partner on her choice. Some girls said consent of the young girls are not often valued when it comes to marriage.

Prof. Indika Ferdinando, a national and international award-winning Sri Lankan theatre practitioner and film director and Sumudu Malalgama, film producer and director conducted the trainings. The initiative “Film Incubator for Equality” is supported by the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Colombo.

During the training, those female short film filmmakers shared their own insights on how GBV is systematically normalized too.

Divya Rasathurai, a young female short filmmaker stated “when producing films on the lived reality of the women, it is important to use metaphoric approaches and to engage the audience emotionally, intellectually, spiritually and physically. Women should not be portrayed as powerless, helpless, voiceless and vulnerable individual”.

The same trainings will be conducted in the eastern and the southern provinces too. Under the film incubator for equality project, 76 young female films makers will be trained on promoting greater equality and gender justice.

CMIL is working closely with the University of Jaffna, the University of Trincomalee campus, and The University of Visual and Performing Arts, Colombo, in designing a digital curriculum on filmmaking through smartphones and addressing human right issues affecting women. The digital course will be available free of charge to all film enthusiasts in Sri Lanka.