KUKI .15 Young Short Film Festival Berlin
13 - 20 November 2022

Girls* Riot Workshop 2022

Curating for the Girls* Riot program - and much more

How do teenage girls want to be represented in film? What moves them and what topics do they consider important? The Girls* Riot Workshop offers a confidential, safe framework in which they can exchange ideas and experiences with one another. For one week, the 15- to 19-year-old participants viewed and discussed 20 international short films and engaged in discourse on topics such as everyday challenges, self-perception, the male gaze, authentic representation, intersectional feminism, power relations, and solidarity among women*.

On two of the workshop days, they received compelling input from the mentors Felipa Goltz and Elisa Aseva and were given an exclusive screening of the long-form documentary BRAINWASHED by US director Nina Menkes.

From a pre-selection of submitted short films, the young curators have created a program for the festival that consists of dynamic, creative film styles and narratives. Themes such as period poverty, underage girls in arranged marriages, mental health, father-daughter relationships, menstrual pain, and society's response to sexual assault shake patriarchy, illuminate and celebrate womanhood, and are tremendously empowering.

Thanks to our 2022 Girls* Riot curators!

Molly, Jasmin, Marta, Jasmine, Leia, Natascha, Lisa, Emma, Julia & Anna

Also many thanks to Rosa Lynch for her workshop assistence and wonderful report: Girls* Riot: The Radical Act of Asking Teenage Girls What They Want

The program premiere, presented and conceived by the curators, will be held on 17 November 2022 at 6pm at Pfefferberg Haus 13.

 

You define yourself as a girl and want to join Girls* Riot next year? Write to us at info@kuki-berlin.com and we'll get in touch when we start planning next year's edition!

How can we best describe how fun and special the Girls* Riot experience is?

Here are a few excerpts from the feedback forms of this year's participants:

Was there anything you particularly liked about the workshop?

-Watching all the films and discussing them together, the mentors and our morning talks.

- I liked that you were allowed to talk so freely about your problems. Especially the round we always did in the morning. Everyone was super nice and open and I learned so much about myself and our society during this week.

- EVERYTHING!!! Especially: Food & snacks, everyone's openness and having a place where you feel at home and can discuss everything :)

- The food, the people, the conversations. We always felt comfortable sharing things and were listened to.

What experiences and insights do you take away from the workshop?

- How important it is to always listen to different opinions

- Aside from learning so many new and amazing things, this whole experience was like a self-awareness boost for me.

- I gained a better understanding of how others live their lives and how many injustices there are in this world (especially through the many films we watched)

- I will never be able to watch a film again without considering the Male-Gaze

- One is always stronger in a group

- More confident and secure in my skin

- More confidence in expressing my opinion

Is there anything else you want to tell us:

- Thank you so much for doing the workshop! I have never been able to speak my mind so freely and honestly as here, the workshop is really special!

- Thank you so much! <3 <3 <3

- I am so glad I participated!!!

- I hope you know how grateful I am for this workshop and your work. This week has inspired me so much and given me so much. Even though I struggled a bit. Girls* Riot has given me back some power and anger and hope.

Was there anything you didn't like? Do you have any suggestions for improvement?

- Nothing really, except that the workshop should be longer!

We would like to thank Stiftung Neue Klassik International for sponsoring the Girls* Riot Workshop!

Here are a few exclusive impressions from this year's workshop

Thanks to our photographer Leah-Frederica Ilk!