9to5: The Story of a Movement

press release: USA | 2019 | DCP | 85 min.

Director: Julia Reichert, Steven Bognar

Most have heard the great Dolly Parton song “Nine to Five,” or seen the eponymous 1980s blockbuster starring Parton, Lily Tomlin, and Jane Fonda. Yet few realize that these two icons of popular culture actually grew out of a social movement that spanned over 25 years, which sought to have a profound impact on work for women and the labor movement itself. In the early 1970s, a group of women office workers in Boston decided that they had suffered in silence long enough and created an organization to force changes in their workplaces. Largely forgotten today, the movement was a unique convergence of those fighting for both women’s and labor rights. The latest documentary from the makers of American Factory covers still-relevant issues such as sexual harassment, equal pay for equal work, the Family and Medical Leave Act, and the glass ceiling, which were, in many cases, first brought to the national stage by those behind the 9 to 5 movement.

Julia Reichert: 50 Years in Film: Emmy Award-winner and three-time Academy Award-nominee Julia Reichert has produced one of the most distinguished bodies of work in American independent documentaries. To celebrate the Ohio-based filmmaker, the Cinematheque is proud

to participate as a venue for this touring retrospective, organized by the Wexner Center in Columbus, that spans Reicher’s career from the landmark feminist conscious-raiser Growing Up Female (1971) to her most recent films including 9to5: The Story of a Movement (2019). Julia Reichert will appear in person on Saturday, November 16, to present her Oscar-nominated feature, Seeing Red: Stories of American Communists. Special Thanks to the Wexner Center’s Dave Filipi.