By Stephanie Ornelas
Sometimes you have to let art speak for itself. As 2022 Sundance Film Festival favorites hit theaters and streaming sites, several new releases tackle issues surrounding reproductive rights. It was a clear theme this year when filmmakers Audrey Diwan, Tia Lessin, Emma Pildes, and Phyllis Nagy told harrowing stories of what can happen when a woman's reproductive rights are taken away.
Movies aren't solely meant to entertain; they're also designed to help us understand important issues - like reproductive health - more clearly. With The Janes releasing in just days, Happening hitting theaters last month, and Call Jane coming in October, we're spending this month looking back at the powerful Q&A panels that followed their premieres in January. Check back weekly to hear from the artists as they discuss intellectual freedom, challenging policymakers, Roe v. Wade, and more.
But first, let's take a look at the films centered on reproductive rights that premiered at past Sundance Film Festivals and/or were supported by the Sundance Institute. From tales of filmmakers and activists coming together to ignite change, to real-life accounts from women involved in a Chicago-based underground clinic, here are 20 Sundance films to help you stay informed on reproductive health and rights.
Aftershock (documentary, 2022 Sundance Film Festival) - A disproportionate number of Black women are failed every year by the U.S. maternal health system. Shamony Gibson and Amber Rose Isaac died due to childbirth complications. Directors Paula Eiselt and Tonya Lewis Lee follow Gibson's and Isaac's bereaved partners, along with their grieving families, as they fight for justice and build communities of support. (Coming soon to Hulu)
Call Jane (fiction, 2022 Sundance Film Festival) - Phyllis Nagy directs this film about suburban housewife Joy (Elizabeth Banks) who lives an ordinary life with her husband and daughter until her pregnancy leads to a life-threatening condition. Now she must navigate a medical establishment unwilling to help. Her journey to find a solution to an impossible situation leads her to the Janes, a clandestine organization of women who provide Joy with an alternative - and in the process, change her life. (Coming to theaters this October)
Happening (fiction, 2022 Sundance Film Festival) - In Audrey Diwan's award-winning feature based in 1963 France, a promising young university student is devastated to learn she's pregnant. She immediately insists on termination, but her physician warns of the unsparing laws against either seeking or aiding abortions, and her tentative attempts to reach out to her closest friends are nervously rebuffed. As weeks pass, an increasingly desperate Anne persists in seeking any possible means of ending the pregnancy in hopes of reclaiming her hard-fought future. (Now in theaters)
The Janes (documentary, 2022 Sundance Film Festival) - In the spring of 1972, police raided an apartment on the south side of Chicago, where seven women who were part of a clandestine network were arrested and charged. Using code names, fronts, and safe houses to protect themselves and their work, the accused had built an underground service for women seeking safe, affordable, illegal abortions. They called themselves Jane. Through The Janes, co-directors and Sundance Film Festival alumni Tia Lessin and Emma Pildes offer firsthand accounts from the women at the center of the group, many speaking on the record for the first time. (Coming to HBO Max June 8)
Just Another Girl On The I.R.T (fiction, 1992 Sundance Film Festival, Collection screening in 2022) - Director Leslie Harris' coming-of-age chronicle tells the story of an intelligent high schooler who aspires to get out of her poor neighborhood, go to college and become a doctor. But her dreams begin to slip away as she discovers she is pregnant. (Available to stream on Hulu, The Roku Channel and Starz)
Abortion Helpline, This Is Lisa (documentary short, 2020 Sundance Film Festival) - At a Philadelphia abortion helpline, counselors answer nonstop calls from women who seek to end pregnancies but can't afford to. In this documentary by filmmakers Barbara Attie, Mike Attie and Janet Goldwater, audiences see how economic stigma and questionable laws determine who has access to abortion. (Available to stream for free on Amazon Prime and The Roku Channel)
Abortion Helpline, This is Lisa
Never Rarely Sometimes Always (fiction, 2020 Sundance Film Festival) - Director and screenwriter Eliza Hittman's film follows Autumn, a stoic, quiet teenager in rural Pennsylvania facing an unintended pregnancy. Left without viable alternatives for termination in her home state, she and her cousin board a bus to New York City. With only a clinic address in hand and nowhere to stay, the two girls venture into the unfamiliar city. (Available to rent on Apple TV)
Premature (fiction, 2019 Sundance Film Festival) - In director Rashaad Ernesto Green's film set in Harlem, a 17-year-old poet begins a romance with a music producer who has just moved to the city during her last months at home before starting college. When she becomes pregnant, she's faced with a difficult decision that could change her life forever. (Available to stream on Hulu, The Roku Channel and Amazon Prime)
Lucia, Before and After (documentary short, 2017 Sundance Film Festival) - Anu Valia's award-winning Sundance short follows a young woman who, after traveling 200 miles, waits out the Texas state-mandated 24-hour waiting period before her abortion can proceed. (Watch now on Vimeo)
Motherland (documentary, 2017 Sundance Film Festival, DFP grant) - This stirring v rit portrait directed by Ramona Diaz takes viewers into the heart of the planet's busiest maternity hospital in the Philippines. Unseen
Most recent headlines
04/09/2025
Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), in collaboration with Dalet, has been a...
23/04/2025
In 2024, Thomson's Total Turnout project played a pivotal role in elevating ethical election reporting and strengthening journalist safety in Pakistan.
Wit...
23/04/2025
We heard that you could use a little pick-me-up, so get ready to sh-sh-shake it ...
23/04/2025
WBD's Max viewership climbs 6%, boosted by The White Lotus' and The Pi...
23/04/2025
March shows a further downward trend of time spent watching television; following the February period when winter holidays contributed to a shorter time spent. ...
23/04/2025
During March, audiences in Mexico increased their streaming usage by 2.1 points compared to the previous month, accounting for 24.4% of TV viewing.
Disclaimer:...
23/04/2025
AANHPI audiences over index the total U.S. for share of time spent with Netflix ...
23/04/2025
SAN JOSE, Calif. Roku has announced new TVs, new streaming devices and significant upgrades to its user interface and software platforms that are designed to st...
23/04/2025
COW Job Listing: Opportunity for a Passionate Feature Film Editor - London-Based...
23/04/2025
RM Equity Partners Acquires MAGIX Software, Appoints Robert Rutkowski as CEO to ...
23/04/2025
All Men Are Wicked Western Shot with Blackmagic Design
Brie Clayton April 23, 2025
0 Comments
Blackmagic Pocket Cinema Camera 4Ks were put to the test...
23/04/2025
NEW YORK Warner Bros. Discovery captured the largest monthly viewership increase among media distributors in March, according to Nielsen's latest Media Dist...
23/04/2025
MIAMI, Fla. Hemisphere Media Group has inked a deal with Samsung to launch WAPA+ as a FAST channel on Samsung TV Plus, a free TV streaming service that comes pr...
23/04/2025
HEBDEN BRIDGE, U.K. Calrec Audio has promoted Sid Stanley to managing director. Stanley, who joined the company in July 2018 as general manager, has been instru...
23/04/2025
WASHINGTON Federal Communications Commission Commissioner Nathan A. Simington has announced a series of staff appointments made in March and April 2025, includi...
23/04/2025
WASHINGTON The Federal Communications Commission has set its agenda for the Monday, April 28, 2025 Open Meeting, which is scheduled to start at 10:30 a.m. in th...
23/04/2025
COW Job Listing: Full-Time Video Editor, Remote
Brie Clayton April 22, 2025
0 Comments
Full-Time Video Editor
April 23, 2025COW Job Listing: Opportu...
23/04/2025
Berklee Abu Dhabi's Jazz Night Kicks off Global Celebration of Music and Cul...
23/04/2025
The E.W. Scripps Co. said it was shutting down its Scripps News over-the-air channel effective November 15 and eliminating at least 200 jobs....
23/04/2025
Audio Helps Chess.com Checkmate Cheating Matches are produced using REMI workflows By Dan Daley, Audio Editor
Wednesday, April 23, 2025 - 7:00 am
Print Th...
23/04/2025
Tech Focus: Intercoms, Part 1 - Key to Onsite, REMI, Hybrid Operations Intercoms keep increasingly disparate production locations together By Dan Daley, Audio ...
23/04/2025
Speaking my language: Bringing AI to the fore with real time audio translation f...
23/04/2025
Back to All News
Netflix Drops Trailer for Crime Drama Secrets We Keep, Set in ...
23/04/2025
Back to All News
World Book Day: Netflix Announces New TV Adaptations and Impac...
23/04/2025
Comscore to Announce First Quarter 2025 Financial ResultsRESTON, VA, April 23, 2025 Comscore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a trusted partner for planning, transacting...
23/04/2025
In an email to RT staff today, RT Director-General, Kevin Backhurst confirmed that RT 's Voluntary Exit Programme (VEP) 2025 is open from today, Wednesday...
23/04/2025
RT will air live coverage on television, radio and online of the funeral of Pope Francis which takes place this Saturday, 26 April 2025.
Beginning at 8.30am o...
23/04/2025
As AI models evolve and adoption grows, enterprises must perform a delicate balancing act to achieve maximum value.
That's because inference - the process ...
23/04/2025
Financial services has long been at the forefront of adopting technological innovations. Today, generative AI and agentic systems are redefining the industry, f...
23/04/2025
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Enables Michelin to focus on development of its ...
23/04/2025
AI is rapidly reshaping what's possible on a PC - whether for real-time image generation or voice-controlled workflows. As AI capabilities grow, so does the...
23/04/2025
An AI agent is only as accurate, relevant and timely as the data that powers it....
23/04/2025
April 23 2025, 02:00 (PDT) Dolby Ushers in the Future of In-car Entertainment at Auto Shanghai 2025
Dolby and industry partners demonstrate robust momentum ...
22/04/2025
Chloe Sevigny at the Magic Farm premiere (photo by Michael Hurcomb/Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival)...
22/04/2025
Music has the power to connect us to one another and to the world around us. Spotify is once again teaming up with the Museum for the United Nations - UN Live&#...
22/04/2025
Spotify has an unwavering commitment to supporting emerging artists across all g...
22/04/2025
This year marks the 55th anniversary of Earth Day, celebrated annually on April 22. On Spotify, listeners can explore a world of stories about our planet in our...
22/04/2025
McAvaney takes the lead for SBS' Coverage of the World Athletics Championshi...
22/04/2025
Virtual idols are poised to revolutionize entertainment, with the market projected to top $4 billion by 2029. Crafted with motion capture and game engine techno...
22/04/2025
As the audiovisual (AV) industry rapidly evolves, educational institutions are preparing the next generation of AV professionals for the future. Singapore Polyt...
22/04/2025
DENVER A new survey highlights just how important streaming has become in the entertainment landscape. Data compiled by Adtaxi shows streaming isnt just an alte...
22/04/2025
Samsung TV Plus has announced that it is now offering nearly 700 streaming channels in the U.S. more than any of the other major FAST platforms, the streaming s...
22/04/2025
PORTSMOUTH, N.H. New findings from Hub Research's latest survey on sports and television coverage reveal Amazon may have cracked the code of how to use tech...
22/04/2025
DETROIT Rockbridge Growth Equity has sold a controlling stake in GSTV to MidOcean Partners. Rockbridge will retain a minority stake in the video network which i...
22/04/2025
ATLANTA Gray Media has promoted Dana Neves to senior managing vice president, overseeing a number of Gray's television markets in the Northeast and Mid-Atla...
22/04/2025
The Infrastructure of Creative Flow: DigitalGlue's creative.space Wins NAB 2...
22/04/2025
iZotope unveils Equinox: the ultimate reverb plugin for Post and Music productio...
22/04/2025
Every way to export transparent videos from After Effects
Graham Quince April 21, 2025
0 Comments
In this video, I break down each way you can export ...
22/04/2025
April 22nd, 2025 Press Materials Available Here
Tribeca Festival 2025 Announces Short Film Lineup
Featuring How I Learned to Die Executive Produced by Osca...
By Stephanie Ornelas
