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A group of 55 influential women in the film industry have curated a list of everything you need to watch on Netflix to celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD) in 2020. 

UN Women, the United Nations organization dedicated to gender equality, announced on Wednesday that it has teamed up with Netflix to launch the collection entitled "Because She Watched" on the streaming platform. Actresses Salma Hayek, Sophia Loren, Laverne Cox, and Millie Bobby Brown joined director Ava Duverney, activist Janet Mock, and more to recommend films, documentaries, and television shows that inspire them.

The collection represents a range of different experiences on screen, from life in prison in Orange Is the New Black to life in the White House in House of Cards. The documentary Paris Is Burning and breakout films Roma and Bird Box also made the list, which is available on Netflix.com/BecauseSheWatched or can be found by searching "Because She Watched" on the site. 

“It’s about making visible the invisible, and proving that only by fully representing and including women on screen, behind-the-camera, and in our narratives overall, society will truly flourish,” Anita Bhatia, UN Women deputy executive director, said in a press release.

Film and television have the power to shape cultural perceptions and attitudes towards gender and shift the gender equality agenda, according to UN Women. But the industry has generally been a missed opportunity, with analysis of popular films across 11 countries having found that just 31% of all speaking characters were women, and only 23% of films featured a female lead character. 

Read More: This Is What It Looks Like When Women Are Given a Voice in Film

“Having a world where everyone is truly represented is about true democracy,” Cox said in a statement released to Variety. “And truly seeing ourselves allows us to envision endless possibilities for ourselves and each other.”

This year’s IWD theme, I am Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights, honors the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action to advance gender equality on March 8. Because She Watched is one of many efforts to gain support from the world to continue rallying behind equality for women and girls.

Find a full list of the women who contributed to the Netflix “Because She Watched” collection below.

  • Alejandra Azcárate (Colombia): Vis a Vis
  • Alice Wu (United States): Frances Ha
  • Andrea Barata Ribeiro (Brazil): Sex Education
  • Anna Winger (Germany): Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
  • Ava DuVernay (United States): A Wrinkle in Time
  • Barbara Lopez (Mexico): Scandal
  • Beren Saat (Turkey): Bird Box
  • Bruna Mascarenhas (Brazil): Quien te cantará
  • Cecilia Suárez (Mexico): Marriage Story
  • Chris Nee (United States): Orange is the New Black
  • Christian Serratos (United States): The Goop Lab
  • Cindy Bishop (Thailand): Anne with an E
  • Elena Fortes (Mexico): Atlantique
  • Esther Acebo (Spain): Chef’s Table: Bo Songvisava
  • Fadily Camara (France): How to Get Away with Murder
  • Fanny Herrero (France): Je Parle Toute Seule
  • Fatimah Abu Bakar (Malaysia): Babies
  • Francesca Comencini (Italy): What Happened, Miss Simone?
  • Giovanna Ewbank (Brazil): The Most Beautiful Thing
  • Hanna Ardéhn (Sweden): Silence of the Lambs
  • Hazar Erguclu (Turkey): House of Cards
  • Hend Sabry (Egypt): Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold
  • Ida Elise Broch (Norway): RuPaul’s Drag Race
  • Janet Mock (United States): Paris Is Burning
  • Joyce Cheng (Hong Kong): Queer Eye
  • Juliana Vicente (Brazil): When They See Us
  • Kemi Adetiba (Nigeria): King of Boys
  • Kiara Advani (India): Lust Stories
  • Lali Espósito (Argentina): Notting Hill
  • Lana Condor (United States): Grace and Frankie
  • Lauren Morelli (United States): Julie & Julia
  • Laurie Nunn (England): The Keepers
  • Laverne Cox (United States): A Call to Courage
  • Liz Garbus (United States): She’s Gotta Have It
  • Logan Browning (United States): Someone Great
  • Lynn Fainchtein (Mexico): 2001: Space Odyssey
  • Marcela Benjumea (Colombia): Dead to Me
  • Mercedes Morán (Argentina): Aquarius
  • Mika Ninagawa (Japan): In the Realm of the Senses
  • Millie Bobby Brown (United Kingdom): Miss Americana
  • Mina El Hammani (Spain): ¿Qué Co#o Está Pasando?
  • Mindy Kaling (United States): Chewing Gum
  • Mira Lesmana (Indonesia): ROMA
  • Mithila Palkar (India): Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette
  • Nahnatchka Khan (United States): Young Adult
  • Ngô Thanh Vân (Vietnam): Wonder Woman
  • Nosipho Dumisa (South Africa): Gravity
  • Pathy Dejesus (Brazil): Raising Dion
  • Paulina Garcia (Chile): Deux Jours, Une Nuit
  • Petra Costa (Brazil): Feminists: What Were They Thinking?
  • Salma Hayek (Mexico): Unbelievable
  • Sandi Tan (Singapore): Russian Doll
  • Shefali Shah (India): Delhi Crime
  • Sophia Loren (Italy): The Crown
  • Yalitza Aparicio (Mexico): Knock Down the House

News

Demand Equity

Netflix, the UN, and 55 Women in Film Team up for International Women's Day Collection

By Leah Rodriguez