A Girl From Mogadishu Released in UK and Ireland on the 4th December
Posted: 25th November 2020
Premiere Screenings starting from November 25th
In advance of A Girl From Mogadishu's rescheduled release in Ireland and the UK on December 4th, Ifrah Foundation in collaboration with Wallace Global Fund will host a series of virtual premiere screening and high level panel events across the globe during the United Nations 16 days of activism against gender based violence commencing on the United Nations International Day for the prevention of Gender Based Violence, November 25th in the UK and Ireland and culminating in East Africa on International Human Rights Day, December 10th.
The high level panel chaired by Irish Ambassador Geraldine Byrne Nason to the United Nations counts the UNFPA executive director UNFPA, Dr Natalia Kanem, philanthropist Susan Gibbs of the Wallace Global Foundation, Anders Thomsen, the UNFPA representative to Somalia, the film’s director Mary McGuckian, composer Nitin Sawhney CBE and Ifrah Ahmed herself amongst its participants.
The President of Ireland said: “A Girl from Mogadishu is … a powerful story of courage, hope and remarkable determination.”
Winner of the Cinema for Peace Women’s Empowerment Award at the 2020 Berlin Film Festival, this powerful and inspiring film is based on the true story of global gender based violence activist, Ifrah Ahmed.
Fleeing war-torn Somalia in 2006 for the United States, Ifrah is trafficked to Dublin, Ireland where she applies for asylum. A traumatic medical examination reveals the extent of her mutilation as a child. Traumatised by the memory, she channels the experience into a force for change and emerges as a formidable campaigner against Female Genital Mutilation at the highest political echelons in Ireland, Europe and globally.
Starring Aja Naomi King (How to Get Away with Murder) as Ifrah Ahmed and Barkhad Abdi (Captain Phillips) along with Orla Brady (Picard, Rose Plays Julie) and Somali icon, Maryam Mursal. Based on the recorded testimony of activist Ifrah Ahmed, it is written and directed by Mary McGuckian and supported by Fís Éireann/Screen Ireland. Also recipient of the Mill Valley 42nd edition World Cinema Award in the US, A Girl from Mogadishu has picked up a host of audience and jury awards during its international film festival run and will be released physically and virtually in Ireland and the UK by Eclipse Pictures and Bohemia Media from December 4th.
The Global Virtual Screening Charity Premiere Screening and Panel Events are being held in aid of Ifrah Foundation, the entity set up by Ifrah Ahmed in 2010 to work on the elimination of FGM in Somalia. The Ifrah Foundation is a registered charity in Ireland and Somalia works on the elimination of FGM in Somalia and beyond through sustained engagement with strategic partners, including governments, private foundations and international governmental organisations including the UNFPA in the actions areas of advocacy, awareness and community empowerment.
The 7 Global Virtual Screening/Panel Events during the 16 days of activism can be accessed HERE.
Global Screening Dates during the 16 days of activism are as follows:
Mary McGuckian said:
“When we celebrate female heroes in cinema, we not only amplify their voices, we empower audiences to be touched and emboldened by their courage. I’m delighted that the film will now be released so that more young women and girls can identify with courageous characters such as Ifrah.”
Ifrah Ahmed said:
“A Girl from Mogadishu is based on my story - but it is also the story of the 200 million women and girls worldwide who have suffered the consequences of Female Genital Mutilation. While the movie is intended to focus attention on the barbarity and scale of the practice, its ambition is also to empower all young women and girls to have the courage to stand up and speak out.”
The film's release campaign coincides with the United Nations 16 Days of Activism against Gender Based Violence between International GBV Day November 25th to International Human Rights day December 10th 2020.