*Please note: All films are geo-locked for viewing within Alberta only.
Directed by: Nefise Özkal Lorentzen | 2020 | 81 min | Norway
In the 1960s, the hippies championed the idea of a sexual revolution. They received neither fatwas nor bodyguards. Today, Seyran Ateş—a Turkish-German lawyer, feminist, and one of the first female imams in Europe—is fighting for a sexual revolution within Islam. She has received two fatwas, three bullets in her neck, numerous death threats, and has to live under constant police protection as a result. Seyran believes the only way to fight against radical Islam is through Islam. In her liberal mosque, there is no gender segregation or exclusion based on sexual orientation.
Seyran Ates: Sex, Revolution & Islam is the story of Seyran’s personal and ideological fight for the modernization of Islam. Her quest for change takes her on a journey worldwide, meeting with different people connected through faith, from sex workers in a German brothel to LGBTQ youth in Uyghur to traditional female imams in China. It is a journey through Seyran’s life, from her humble beginnings as a Muslim girl in the slums of Turkey to becoming a female leader daring to challenge her religion and rebel against extremism in the name of peace and love.
Listen in to our Filmmaker Spotlight with Nefise Özkal Lorentzen
PRECEDED BY THE SHORT FILM: Still I Rise
Directed by: Jeni Lee | 2021 | 3 min 48 sec | Australia
Namrah the Brave survived being trafficked, but she continues to feel shame. How will she rise up and own her name?