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Film Festival

The 2015 Tucker Center Film Festival marks the 5th anniversary of this important event in which we celebrate films that feature women’s sport and female athletes. The Tucker Center Film Festival is one of more than 1,000 events taking place across the country for National Girls and Women in Sport Day (NGWSD). Congress has proclaimed this national day each year since 1987. NGWSD recognizes the progress of girls and women in sports and the benefits that sports and fitness activities can bring to the lives of all girls and women.

The 2015 TCFF was held February 2, 2015 at the TCF Bank Stadium DQ Indoor Club Room. The theme of this year’s film festival was "Women in Combat Sports." The selected films weave together themes about how sport in general, and combat sports (i.e., boxing, mixed martial arts) in particular, can provide empowering and transformative opportunities for women and girls, as well as challenge gender stereotypes about female athleticism yet also be a space where traditional ideas about gender get reproduced. With the rising popularity of women’s mixed martial arts and the UFC, combat sports provide a rich, complex and unique context to think about female athleticism in the 21st century.

The Heat imageTrailer: The Heat
"The Heat" is a short documentary about Heather "The Heat" Hardy, a single mother and professional boxer who was displaced by Hurricane Sandy. Heather uses fighting to provide a living for her and her daughter, Annie, while simultaneously pushing the sport of women's boxing into the mainstream. (5mns)

Rowdyt Rhonda Rowsey imageespnW Nine for IX Short: Rowdy Ronda Rowsey
On Feb. 23, 2013, Ronda Rousey made history by becoming the UFC's first female bantamweight champion. After locking up her signature armbar on Liz Carmouche, Rousey became the No. 1 female fighter in the world, and she has been on the rise ever since. Where did this force of nature come from? And how high can Rousey go? The film takes an inside look at that fight and how Rousey's ascension is paving the way for female fighters. (14mns)

Outside the Ring imageFeature Film: Outside The Ring
Through the lens of a unique violence recovery program in Toronto, this documentary provides a glimpse into the lives of women and transgendered survivors of violence and the impact Boxing has had in their healing. The film follows the ways in which participants challenge social constructs that dictate that women must not experience their own feelings of aggression. (27mns)

To download the promotional flier for the event click here.

And here's an interesting article on "Examining the Growth and Popularity of Women's Mixed Martial Arts."


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