Event

About Earth Mama

Savanah Leaf's extraordinary debut feature asks, "What if a parent is just a person who is fighting to be the best version of themselves, and made a mistake?" Gia, currently pregnant with her third child, tries relentlessly to right the wrongs of her past and reclaim her two children from the foster care system. Determined to beat a system mercilessly pitted against her, she finds comfort—and the strength to rebuild her family—in her community. Earth Mama debuted to near universal acclaim at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival, was named one of the Top Ten Independent Films of the Year by the National Board of Review, and Leaf won Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director, or Production at the British Academy Film Awards. [101 min; drama; English]

This screening will be followed by a Q&A with Robin Robinson (IU Media School) on the role of film festivals in the cultivation and dissemination of the stories and work of Black women.

Presented in partnership with the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center, The Media School, The Center for Documentary Research and Practice, and the Black Film Center & Archive, and generously supported by the Black Philanthropy Circle and the Women's Philanthropy Leadership Council.

"Bolstered by expert empathy, understated direction, and evocative performances, Earth Mama highlights resilience while whispers of social misogynoir are incorporated without abandon and confronted head-on by the film’s women." — Peyton Robinson, RogerEbert.com

"By putting a mirror to Gia and placing us in her feet, shoes or not, Leaf beckons viewers to contemplate how contemporary society fails its Gias every single day, to face how this cycle of poverty continues, and to understand that Gia and women like her can’t conquer it alone." — Ronda Racha Penrice, The Wrap

"The first insanely good entry into what we can hope will be a long and winding career behind the camera." — David Jenkins, Little White Lies

Any film screened at IU Cinema may contain content that viewers find sensitive or upsetting. Visit our Audience Advisories page to learn more.

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