Join Reel Causes at the Vancouver International Film Festival and watch our partner film: Ma – Cry of Silence.

From The Maw Naing comes this bracing political drama — a story of women fighting desperately for their rights. Military coups have defined much of Myanmar’s recent history, and under the current dictatorship violence has driven many young rural citizens from their homes to cities, where their labour is ruthlessly exploited. Naing’s gripping film tells the story of female sweatshop employees who choose to stand up against workplace oppression, striking for two months’ back pay.

From the harshly lit shop floor where the women do their work to the dorm where they make their plans, Naing uses setting to heighten the drama. The glare of fluorescent lighting, the rattling fans, and the rumbling din of sewing machines underscore the harsh conditions of sweatshop labour, and the director plays up the women’s cramped, shadowy living quarters for contrast. This is a dark, unflinching film, but it’s anything but cynical: The violence and oppression these workers face is distressing, but its depiction is meant not to dampen hope but to spark outrage and action.

VIFF runs from October 2nd to 12th. Ma – Cry of Silence screens:

• October 2nd at 3:15pm at International Village 8
• October 9th at 9:30pm at International Village 9
• October 11th at 1:30pm at International Village 8