Sponsored by Empower Women Media, the film competition elevates women’s voices as they explore the importance of women’s empowerment and freedom of belief.
LOS ANGELES — The Losing Side by Syeda Kashmala (Pakistan) was awarded the grand prize in the 2024 Freedom of Religion or Belief Film Competition. I Choose Who I Am by Maria Rahim (Pakistan) took 1st runner-up, and Bridging Faiths by Azra Nafees Yousafzai (Pakistan) was awarded 2nd runner-up.
The grand prize winner receives a $3,000 cash prize, 1st runner-up $1,500, and 2nd runner-up $500.
Many of the media projects submitted to the film competition came from women who took part in Empower Women Media’s Training Fellowship. For six months, these talented women from Pakistan, Iran, and Afghanistan learned about Freedom of Religion or Belief (FoRB) and received training on how to produce contextualized short films to reach their communities through storytelling.
The Losing Side tells the true story of four young women forced to convert and marry, and who courageously raise their voices against this injustice.
In I Choose Who I Am, a minority woman in Pakistan shares the complexities of identity, belonging, and living out her faith in a foreign land.
Bridging Faiths follows a group of women from different religions as they come together to challenge misconceptions and promote unity and understanding.
“These women from Pakistan, Iran and Afghanistan continue to show great courage in sharing their stories of freedom of religion or belief,” said Shirin Taber, Director of Empower Women Media. “They take enormous risks to educate the public about human dignity and women’s rights. We hope these films embolden our leaders to stand up for the women and girls in their societies.”
In addition to the top three films, Daughters of Abraham, by Nada Higuera (Palestine and U.S.) and Heidi Basch-Harod (Israel and U.S.) won the Global Award. Sobia Ali (Pakistan) won the Women’s Empowerment Award for submitting two films: Vanishing Voices and Unveiling the Cut.
Empower Women Media invited ten highly respected judges to review the short films, including Dr. David Curry, CEO of Global Christian Relief; Paul Marshall, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom; Marjan Keypour of the Middle East Institute; Charmaine Hedding of the Shai Fund; Jeremy Barker of the Religious Freedom Institute; Lisa Daftari, Editor-in-Chief of The Foreign Desk; and other leading voices for religious freedom.
“More than just highlighting up-and-coming, great filmmakers, this film competition has unearthed powerful stories of resilient, strong women to inspire change and freedom,” said judge Dr. David Curry.
This is the seventh annual Freedom of Religions or Belief Film Competition sponsored by Empower Women Media.
Other films honored in the competition were Scarred Beauty, by Rezvan Moghaddam—Best Advocacy Award; Melodies of Resistance, by Wagma Feroz—Best Production Award; Harmony in Diversity, by Jamaima Afridi—Best Diversity Award; Enduring Equality: 170 Years of Iranian Women’s Struggle, by Fariba Parsa—Best Champion Award; Maman-Joon’s Garden, by Ara Asgarian Hurtado—Best Storytelling Award; Resonant Rhythms in Hunza, Pakistan, by Nadia Zartaj—Best Music Award; Bell of Death and Torture in the Morn of Kabul, by Atefa Ghafoory—Best Activist Award; and Her Strength, by Ruba Rihani—Best Inclusion Award.
The winning films will screen before civil society and faith leaders in May in Islamabad and at the first ever women’s film festival in Peshawar, Pakistan. They will also be featured at the Women’s Abraham Alliance forum in Dubai, November 15–16.
For more information about the short films, female media producers, and the film festivals in Pakistan and the Women’s Forum in Dubai, contact Empower Women Media Director, Shirin Taber, at [email protected] or www.empowerwomen.media. To watch the films, visit Empower Women Media YouTube channel.
Honorable Mentions: Reclaiming Humanity, by Maryam Moradi (Iran); Raising Voices, by Najia Mir (Pakistan); Tears of Kabul, by Mariam Ayub (Afghanistan); Women. Life. Freedom, by Poppy Farsijani (Iran); From Darkness to Light, by Khalida Niaz (Pakistan); Beyond Boundaries, by Zarghona Khalil (Pakistan); Love—An Essence of All Religions, by Ayesha Rafique (Pakistan); Breaking Barriers, by Fariba Akbari (Afghanistan).
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