Meet the young girls and the women of past, present and future as Underwire Festival’s ninth edition kicks off with a selection of shorts that put women centre stage – and hopeful for the future.

These are films that put women’s stories, their interiority and points of view first, they occupy their spaces proudly, question the meaning of femininity and explore what power means.

Join the Underwire team and filmmakers in the BFI Blue Room for drinks after the screening.

FIlms:

BALLS
Two women discover whether or not the Foundling Hospital will take their babies….
Nominated for:
XX Award
Directing Award – Lily Cole
Producing Award – Kate Wilson
Women Power 2

WOMEN & POWER
An animated short film exploring the relationship between women and power and also the female form. Based on Mary Beard’s book ‘Women & Power: A Manifesto’.
Nominated for: Animator Award – Meg Earls

EUDAIMONIA
Ancient philosophy meets a futuristic religion in a film about womanhood, happiness, and independent thinking. Shot entirely at the Leith Theatre in Edinburgh with an all female cast, Eudaimonia seeks to inspire the viewer to question reality and use their rational capabilities just as Grace is asked to do the same.

Based on the Allegory of Plato’s Cave, Eudaimonia is set in a world of restrictions, rules and routines. This world is irrevocably altered for a young woman, Grace, after the sudden disappearance of her sister, Hope. This winding film weaves together realities about a woman’s body and each individual’s abilities to fight against imposed dogma.
Nominated for: Cinematography Award – Claire Murphy, Iguácel Cuiral

DAYS LIKE THIS
Days like this is an autobiographical animation depicting the routines that emerge from living in a big city like London. Mixing reality with daydreaming, this film explores issues like feminism, veganism, capitalism and alienation.
Nominated for: Animator Award – inês delicioso

CHANGING POINT
The story of Indonesia’s first female champion surfer.
Nominated for: XX Award

VICTORIA SIN
Whilst many London drag queens have dismissed politics for social capital, Victoria Sin’s drag constantly challenges, provokes, and rejuvenates the city’s queer spaces. This film is an experimental documentary about how Victoria unapologetically takes up space when they are in drag. They give spotlight and agency to the daily labours of femininity that are invisible and policed.
Nominated for: XX Award

FUTURE FIRST
This short film is an artistic interpretation of a black girls response to cornrows being renamed as ‘boxer braids’. The anchor point of the film is cultural appropriation but it expands much wider than that – it isn’t about taking a stance as a victim, it is about reclaiming our place as black women and not being afraid to take up space.
Nominated for: XX Award

MARY ANNING
It’s 1830 and the scientific world is closed to women. Mary, a prolific but destitute fossil hunter has recently made another significant discovery on the Jurassic Coast. Fuelled by passion and frustration, she intensifies her work on the dangerous cliffs to seek the recognition she deserves. Based on real life events Mary Anning is the story of one woman’s quest to make ground-breaking discoveries against all odds.
Nominated for:
XX Award
Production Design Award – Ana Baldini