A Girl From Mogadishu to round off it's festival premiere run at the female-focused 51Fest in New York
Posted: 28th June 2019
Director Mary McGuckian's empowering new feature film, A Girl from Mogadishu will make its North American premiere at the inaugural 51Fest in New York City.
Presented by Women in the World and the IFC Center, the 51Fest celebrates the voice and vision of the female majority through screenings and conversations. The festival is set to run from Thursday 18 July - Sunday 21 July, with A Girl from Mogadishu screening on the Sunday, followed by a post -screening discussion with McGuckian, actor Barkhad Abdi and real-life subject Ifrah Ahmed.
Based on the real-life testimony of global FGM activist Ifrah Ahmed, A Girl from Mogadishu stars Aja Naomi King (How to Get Away with Murder, Birth of a Nation), Martha Cango Antonio (Black) and Barkhad Abdi (Blade Runner, Eye of the Storm, Captain Phillips).
Fleeing war-torn Somalia in 2006, Ifrah Ahmed is trafficked to Ireland where a traumatic medical examination when seeking asylum reveals the extent of her mutilation as a child. Traumatized by the memory, she channels the experience into a force for change and emerges as a formidable campaigner at the highest political platform.
The film was written by McGuckian, who's previous credits include This is the Sea, Words Upon the Window Pane and Man on the Train. McGuckian often commits to dramatic story-telling from the female perspective and is an avid campaigner for equal opportunity for women in film.
A Girl from Mogadishu will begin a trio of festival premieres tonight at the Edinburgh International Film Festival, where it will make its international premiere. It will then screen on 14 July for its official Irish premiere at the Galway Film Fleadh, before its 21 July screening in New York at 51Fest.