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Pioneers in Skirts is a socially conscious film about how women & girls identify and address the obstacles their ambition encounters, and what we ALL can do about it.
Frustrated with her own challenges in the film industry, filmmaker Ashley Maria takes us with her in the feature documentary Pioneers in Skirts as she looks for advice for overcoming the ambition-limiting obstacles in her career.
Not finding many answers within her profession, she decides to expand her search to include other industries and society in general.
In an inspiring portrait of perseverance and determination, Ashley shares her own story as she follows the journey of 3 ambitious teen girls on a robotics team, their fathers, as well as a young mother who is up for a promotion – all while traveling the U.S., speaking to fellow pioneering women and topic experts who have solutions to share.
In the film, Ashley learns about day-to-day experiences full of slights and insults — usually from people who are often unaware they have acted in an offensive or demeaning way.
She finds out how we ALL can address these behaviors and unfair perceptions that can chip away at ambition and make her feel like she must re-think her dreams.
Directed by DGA award-winning and Emmy-nominated director Ashley Maria.
Official Global Release at SXSW EDU: March 2023
Specs: Secure high resolution online streaming link, Blu-ray disc, DCP (digital cinema package)
Language: English | 60-min runtime
Closed captioning: English
Subtitles: Spanish, Portuguese, Simplified Chinese, French, German, Russian, Arabic
Title: YOU ARE NOT ALONE
The design goal for our movie poster was to express a feeling of optimism. Color elements, diverse faces — all strategically placed to help the viewer feel the hope this film brings. – read more –
More information about the film and access to photos & promotional materials can be found here: pioneersinskirts.com/press-kit.
A Pioneer — at its core, is a woman or girl who paves her own way and leads the way for the next generation.
3-min Watch/Embed/Download links:
Public Television 30-sec Watch/Embed link:
IT’S NOT YOU, YOU DON’T NEED TO FIX YOURSELF: Empowering the many women & girls who often face unfair career-limiting obstacles and setbacks to know that they aren’t alone.
CULTURAL PREJUDICES CAN CHIP AWAY AT YOU: Raising awareness about prejudgment and stereotyping in the culture we live, work, and learn in.
IT GETS BETTER, YOU HAVE ALLIES & THERE ARE SOLUTIONS: To help them get past unfair obstacles, everyone…co-workers and classmates need to stand with the women and girls in their lives.
Directed by Ashley Maria
Produced by Lea-Ann W. Berst, Ashley Maria
Sound Edit by Amy Reynolds Reed
Composed by Alana Balagot
Sound Editing & Design by Devon Kelley at Skywalker Sound
Sound Mix by Vicki Lemar at Technicolor Post-Production Sound
Edited by Tiffany Hope, Ashley Maria, Crystal Lentz
Production Sound by Rebecca Chan
Cinematography by Elizabeth Yarwood
Written by Lea-Ann W. Berst, Ashley Maria
Graphic Design by Tom Bloczynski
Legal by Brooke Butner, Esq., USC Gould School of Law
Movie Theme Song “Freeway” by Mia Yara
(Listen to it on our Spotify playlist!)
