The Janes
Description
Barely 40 years ago, pregnant American women had no recourse when it came to unexpected or unplanned pregnancies. Left to determine their fate and well-being, many women risked their lives with terrifying back-alley procedures or disastrous home remedies. This arcane environment gave birth to “Jane,” an underground collective of women in Chicago that helped an estimated 11,000 women secure safe and affordable abortions between 1968 and 1973. With stunning archival footage, shocking revelations, and a delightful chorus of brave, daring women, the film is a meditation on national anxieties. With the SCOTUS ruling looming in June and the past scarily catching up with the present, The Janes is a timely reminder that politics are always personal.
PRESENTED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
Tia Lessin received an Academy Award® nomination for Best Documentary Feature and the Sundance Film Festival Documentary Grand Jury Prize for her second directorial effort, Trouble the Water (2008). A long-time associate of Michael Moore, she has worked as a producer on many of his projects, among them the TV series The Awful Truth (1999-2000), for which she received two Emmy nominations; the Oscar®-winning Bowling for Columbine (2002); Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004), winner of the Cannes Film Festival’s Palme d’or; and Where to Invade Next (2015). In addition to Trouble the Water, her directorial features include Behind the Labels (2001) and Citizen Koch (2013).
The Janes marks Emma Pildes’ directorial debut. As a producer, her films include two for which she received Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special Emmy Award nominations, Spielberg (2017) and Jane Fonda in Five Acts (2018), as well as Very Ralph (2019) and The One and Only Dick Gregory (2021).
Film Details
LanguageEnglish
Year2022
PremiereCalifornia
Runtime101
CountryUSA
DirectorTia Lessin, Emma Pildes
ProducerEmma Pildes, Daniel Arcana, Jessica Levin
Executive ProducerSusan Lacy
EditorKristen Huntley
CinematographerKeith Walker
MusicMax Avery Lichtenstein
Print SourceHBOhttp://www.hbo.com
Closed CaptionsClosed captions are available for this screening.
Audio DescriptionAudio description is not available for this screening.
American Sign Language (ASL) InterpretationAmerican Sign Language (ASL) interpretation is not currently scheduled for this event. For more information about ASL interpretation at our events, e-mail ADA@SFFilm.org.
