Dark Matter Distribution today launched the website, trailer and poster for feature documentary The Leadership, following the announcement of the film’s world premiere in the 2020 Sydney Film Festival. Produced by multi-award winning Bunya Productions’ Greer Simpkin (Mystery Road, Sweet Country), The Leadership is written and directed by acclaimed documentary maker Ili Baré in her feature length debut.
A global pandemic and the urgent crisis of climate change are showing us that we need to be guided by science more than ever before. At the same time, our world leaders have never been more scrutinised. The world is crying out for the best minds of our generation for solutions. But women are disproportionately excluded from both leadership and STEMM (Science, Tech, Engineering, Maths and Medicine). The Leadership reveals the systemic challenges and obstacles for women in STEMM and why it could have a profound impact on us all.
In 2016, an ambitious leadership initiative for women working in STEMM fields called Homeward Bound was launched. As the maiden voyage of the pilot program set sail for Antarctica with the first 76 scientists on board, documentary maker Ili Baré and her small film crew joined the voyage to document the experiment ‘warts and all’.
Filmed on location in Antarctica, Argentina, Indonesia, China, Australia, United Kingdom, France and United States, the film follows a handful of the scientists back to their homes and workplaces to reflect on their journeys post-voyage.
Director/writer Ili Baré said “When I boarded the ship to Antarctica in 2016 I had no idea what to expect. But as events unfolded on board I began to see the ship as a microcosm for a wider story about us all. And four years later, it is amazing to me that this film we have created about science, women and leadership feels more relevant by the day.”
Producer Greer Simpkin said “‘In a time of great change, director Ili Baré has delivered a complex and compelling film about the change we want to see. We are incredibly grateful to the Sydney Film Festival for bringing our film to audiences right now. Bunya is immensely proud of The Leadership and we congratulate Ili on her feature doc debut.”
The Leadership screens in competition for Sydney Film Festival’s Documentary Australia Foundation Award for Best Australian Documentary.
The Leadership is one of the 2016 cohort of Good Pitch Australia films alongside 2040, In My Blood It Runs, Ghosthunter, Dying to Live and Guilty.
The Leadership is Produced by Bunya Productions in association with Screen Australia, Good Pitch Australia and Screen NSW. Director/Writer: Ili Baré; Producer: Greer Simpkin; Executive Producer: David Jowsey.
The Leadership will release in cinemas nationally later in 2020 through Dark Matter Distribution and will be accompanied by a 3 year social impact campaign.
