MTV Documentary Films will debut documentary short contenders A Life Too Short, from two-time Oscar® winner Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, and Tribeca Film Festival winner My Father The Mover from breakout director Julia Jansch on Friday, January 22 at 7:00PM ET on Pluto TV.
An official selection of the 2020 DOC NYC Film Festival’s Shortlist and SFFILM’s DocStories festival, A Life Too Short, produced by two-time Oscar winner Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, directed by Safyah Usmani, co-directed by Saad Zuberi and executive produced by Sheila Nevins and Guy Oseary, examines the startling tragedy behind the killing of Pakistani activist and social media star Qandeel Baloch. A vocal, provocative proponent of women’s rights and freedom of expression, Qandeel challenged conventional ideas with her open exclamations of women’s equality and sexuality. Her bravery and outspokenness ended in chilling violence that reverberates around the world. Following Qandeel’s murder, a crucial amendment to Pakistani law was passed, eliminating the possibility for families to forgive the perpetrators of “honor” killings.
The premiere of A Life Too Short will be followed by the award-winning short documentary My Father The Mover at 7:45 PM ET. The film introduces a South African teenager named Alatha whose father calls himself a Mover. Using African dance moves – electronic Gqom beats – he helps kids in Khayelitsha township to transcend hardship and “find their superpowers.” The Mover is also a single father, and while he has helped many kids, he still has difficulty getting his own daughter to find her own powers. But in a tender moment together, that is all about to change.
My Father The Mover was the winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary Short at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival, the Audience Award at The Boston Globe’s GlobeDocs, and a nominee for the Critics Choice Documentary Awards. After its debut at Tribeca, the film went on to win Best Documentary Short at Calgary Film Festival, Best Short Film at Cleveland International Film Festival, Best Documentary Short at Urbanworld Film Festival, among others. It has also screened at Palm Springs, Heartland, Montclair, Flickers’ Rhode Island, Amdocs, Florida film festivals, and more.