Review: Covered Girls

A documentary film following three Muslim-American girls in the post 9/11 New York City — by Janet McIntyre, dean of Instruction for Integrated Media, Performing and Visual Arts, and Amy Wendel — was shown Tuesday in the Visual Arts Center auditorium, at 5 p.m. on Tuesday.

The documentary, “Covered Girls,” was shown first, followed by Q & A with McIntyre.

The film was produced directly after the events of 9/11. According to IMDb, it was originally aired a little over nine years ago on Showtime. At the time of the film, McIntyre was attending New York University Tisch School of Art.
The film is 20 minutes long, and follows three Muslim American girls — Amnah, Kiren, and Tavasha, all differing in ideas and lifestyles — in New York City.

The purpose of the film was to provide a look into every day life of a people living post 9/11, including the harassment, effect, and ideas from a Muslim-American’s perspective.

McIntyre said the lack of narration in the film supported the idea that the film was handing over the focus to the Muslim-American community’s perspective and highlighting their voices.

Prejudice comes from little exposure to a group of people. Laughter erupted as audience members connected to the stories of the different girls who were very much so human, and real.

This film allowed a close up of the girls and displayed diversity in opinion in the community, dispelling the idea of uniformity within a group. The purpose of the film, to open up our eyes and humanize the Muslim American community, was achieved in the film.

The film felt brief and leaves one wondering and wanting to see more of the back-story.

The film went by quickly. Originally, the filmmakers had about 60 hours of footage, which had to be cut down to 20 minutes for Showtime. The film was shot in a short frame of time versus the new film by McIntyre, “Faded,” which was produced over a five-year time frame.

According to McIntyre, the film can be viewed on Filmmakers Library, but the site is meant for educational institutions so it costs money. Also, the film is aired the week of the anniversary of 9/11 on Showtime every year.

McIntyre’s film “Faded” will be showing March 15 at 7 p.m. at the Portland Art Museum NW Film Center, 1219 S.W. Park Ave. Tickets are $8 for students and may be purchased through www.nwfilm.org.

Advocate Staff