ST. GOERGE – In partnership with the American Association of University Women , DSC DOCUTAH, southern Utah’s premier documentary film festival, will present a free screening of the acclaimed Miss Representation Thursday, March 22, at the Dixie State College Eccles Theater at 150 S .700 E. in St. George.
A documentary film by Jennifer Siebel Newson, Miss Representation explores how media misrepresentations of women have led to the underrepresentation of women in positions of power and influence. The film features interviews with Katie Couric, Rachel Maddow, Condoleezza Rice, Nancy Pelosi and more.
“We are pleased to showcase this very important film which challenges the media’s limiting portrayal of women and girls,” said Christina Schultz, Dixie State College Vice President of Institutional Advancement and DOCUTAH Executive Director. “Research shows that while women have made great strides in leadership over the past few decades, the United States is still 90th in the world for women in national legislatures.”
Schultz also stated women hold only three percent of clout positions in mainstream media.
“We are confident that audiences who attend our campus screening will leave enlightened and with a new perspective,” she said.
In addition to screening the film, DOCUTAH organizers will honor decades of women in Southern Utah government including former female mayors and city council members – many of whom will be in attendance for the evening’s events. A highlight of the evening will be a reenactment of America’s first all-women city council meeting that took place under the direction of Mayor Mary Woolley Chamberlain in Kanab, Utah in 1912.
In addition to Dixie State College and the AAUW, sponsors and supporters of the Miss Representation screening event include American Association of University Women and Utah Business Women, Washington County Children’s Justice Center, The Dove Center and E’lan Woman Magazine.
The screening of Miss Representation is part of DSC DOCUTAH’s ongoing commitment to provide quality exposure to meaningful documentary films to its community. The Southern Utah International Film Festival was recently listed as one of the nation’s best “Small-Town Documentary Film Festivals for 2012” by the Public Broadcasting System.
The screening of Miss Representation will be free and open to the public and will be preceded by a public reception at 6 p.m.
CAUTION: this film contains graphic images. For more information, contact Melynda Thorpe Burt at (435) 773-0781. For more information about DOCUTAH, visit www.docutah.com.