Women Behind the Wheel
Synopsis
Their route brings them to the doorsteps of women from all walks of life, revealing a women's movement that's had as many ups and downs as the drive itself. A 78 year-old gynaecologist recalls the turbulent transition from Soviet rule to independence, and testimonies of domestic abuse, 'bride kidnapping' and religious extremism expose the region's complex attitude to women's rights.
But despite the evident patriarchal oppression in these countries, it's certainly not the whole picture. Stories of female empowerment against all odds emerge, from a group training Tajikistan's first ever female trekking guides to a feminist collective running workshops on sexual pleasure.
Cat and Hannah gain unprecedented access to over 50 women. Their testimonies shed light on a women’s movement largely ignored by Western media.
This is a story of female emancipation and solidarity across different cultures that have a lot more in common than they might have thought.
Details
- Year
- 2022
- Type of project
- Features
- Running time
- 97 min
- Director
-
Hannah Congdon, Catherine Haigh
- Producer
- Hannah Congdon, Catherine Haigh
- Executive Producer
- Christopher Hird, Cathleen Trigg
- Editor
- Anna Zavialova, Jake Kennedy
- Director of Photography
- Hannah Congdon, Catherine Haigh
- Composer
- Hollie Buhagiar
Genre
Categories
Production Status
Production Company
Dartmouth Films
Somerset HouseWest Wing, Room S12
Strand
London
WC2R 1LA
Page updates
This page was last updated on 12th May 2025. Please let us know if we need to make any amendments or request edit access by clicking below.
See also
You may also be interested in other relevant projects in the database.
The Things We Don't Say
Director: Ornella Mutoni
Year: 2024
A group of young adults born during or just after the 1994 genocide against Rwanda's Tutsi people gather to find the courage to break a powerful taboo. Rwanda is one of the few nations in the world providing specialist counselling for children conceived through rape, who number 10,000 across the country. Here, course leader Emilienne, a mother, therapist and genocide survivor, helps the group to imagine a future free from family secrets and societal stigma. In a circle of supportive peers, they tell their individual stories and face their struggles together, in the hope their participation will advocate for others facing similar trauma. Aesthetica Short Film Festival 2024 NY African Film Festival 2025
NOVA '78
Director: Aaron Brookner, Rodrigo Areias
Year: 2025
NOVA '78 resurrects the legendary Nova Convention, the groundbreaking three-day gathering held in New York in 1978 to celebrate William S. Burroughs and the artistic revolution he inspired. Built from newly restored, previously unseen 16mm footage shot by Howard Brookner, the film captures extraordinary performances and intimate backstage moments featuring Patti Smith, Frank Zappa, Laurie Anderson, Allen Ginsberg, Philip Glass, John Cage, Merce Cunningham and many other defining voices of the era. More than a concert film or historical record, NOVA '78 is an immersive time capsule of a fleeting moment when literature, music, art and radical ideas collided to reshape contemporary culture.
When Cumbia is On
Director: Maria Paz Gonzales
Year: 2024
When Cumbia is On follows three South American musicians and traces the sound of cumbia music through the streets of Edinburgh, asking whether this rhythm is what lets them build a sense of belonging in a foreign land.