Although 2019 is barely in its infancy, one thing is for certain- this is the year of the documentary. From Finding Neverland to Abducted in Plain Sight to the Oscar-winning Free Solo and Period. End of Sentence as well as dozens of other highly acclaimed Sundance debuts, documentaries are making a splash in the film market. 2019 has also been dubbed “year of the woman” with more women in filmmaking than ever before. Therefore, it’s only fitting that PBS announced the debut of their new miniseries, Women, War & Peace II, during Women’s History Month and just days before International Women’s Day, which takes place on March 8.
The series, directed by an all-female cast of directors and executive produced by Abigail Disney and Gini Reticker for Fork Film, shows how some of the biggest international stories in recent years were shaped by women. The series showcases four never-before-told stories about the women who risked their lives for peace and changed history in the process: Wave Goodbye to Dinosaurs (Eimhear O’Neill), The Trials of Spring (Gini Reticker), Naila and the Uprising (Julia Bacha), and A Journey of a Thousand Miles: Peacekeepers (Geeta Gandbhir and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy). The stories transcend time and space, ranging from women who played a vital role in Palestinian peacekeeping in the early 1980s to women who were involved in peacekeeping efforts in Northern Ireland, Egypt, Haiti, and others in recent years.
“Women play a central role in ending conflicts and building peace, but their stories are often left untold,” said Stephen Segaller, vice president of programming, WNET. “As women continue to gain political momentum in the U.S., with more women elected in this year’s election than any point in U.S. history, Women, War & Peace II, shares four remarkable stories of brave women facing tremendous obstacles to pursue significant political change.”
Women, War & Peace II will air on Monday, March 25 and Tuesday, March 26, 9-11 p.m. on PBS. It will also be available for streaming online following the television debut.
