Ballet After Dark
After announcing the best director nominees at this year’s Academy Awards, actor/writer/producer Issa Rae could not resist a barb: “Congratulations to those men.” All the nominees were male, and nearly all, except for Korean director Bong Joon-ho, were white.
The film industry has long been dominated by white men, and that is why it is important to provide outlets for women and filmmakers of color. This is the second year in a row that Zonta Club of Madison, a women’s empowerment organization, has sponsored LUNAFEST, a traveling festival that spotlights films directed by women. This year’s lineup features six short films on a range of issues, from navigating the corporate world to the need for increased acceptance and acknowledgment of trans women. The short films will screen at the west-side Marcus Point Cinema on March 11.
LUNAFEST, created by LUNA Bar, the nutrition bar, was launched in 2001 as a way to push back against the industry’s gender disparities. “The mission of Zonta is to empower women through service and advocacy, and this event enables us to bring attention to these critical issues facing women,” says Jane Hartman of Zonta Club and co-chair of LUNAFEST.
Anja Hakoshima, host operations manager of LUNAFEST, says the festival’s programmers are seeking diverse perspectives on race, gender and aging.
Ballet After Dark, directed by B. Monet, is about a Baltimore-based program founded by Tyde-Courtney Edwards, designed to help participants find resilience, confidence and self-love in the aftermath of sexual assault.
What began as healing workshops for women who have experienced trauma and had nowhere else to turn, became a space for young black women to discover themselves through the graceful movements of ballet. It is a testament to the healing power of dance and the transformative force of loving the skin you’re in.
In another LUNAFEST offering, There You Are, directed by Lisa Donato, a trans woman named Jessica learns she is expected to present herself as a man to pay her respects to her dying grandmother. As Jessica and her partner struggle to help her pull off a masculine appearance, the absurdity of being forced to be someone you’re not for the comfort of others is made uncomfortably clear.
LUNAFEST is March 11 at Marcus Point Cinema, 6-8:30 p.m. Ticket sales benefit the service and advocacy projects of Zonta Club of Madison.
