International Women’s Day is approaching fast, with Netflix and UN Women teaming up to create a feminist selection of content for the platform in honor of the holiday. The collection, Because She Watched, includes original series, documentaries, and films focusing on the diverse experiences of women around the globe. Netflix released a trailer, narrated by To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before star Lana Condor, Wednesday morning.
The collection features curations from numerous women in the industry, including Sophia Loren, Salma Hayek, Yalitza Aparicio, Millie Bobby Brown, Laurie Nunn, Lana Condor, Petra Costa and Ava DuVernay. The Netflix originals showcased include Orange Is the New Black, Marriage Story, Bird Box, House of Cards, Queer Eye, The Crown, and Roma. It will be available for streaming on the platform all year.
UN Women Deputy Executive Director Anita Bhatia noted to Variety that the collaboration “is about taking on the challenge of telling women’s stories and showing women in all their diversity.” She elaboorated, “It’s about making visible the invisible, and proving that only by fully representing and including women on screen, behind-the-camera and in our narratives overall, society will truly flourish.”
Laverne Cox, Orange Is The New Black cast member and transgender rights activist, shared this sentiment. “Having a world where everyone is truly represented is about true democracy. And truly seeing ourselves allows us to envision endless possibilities for ourselves and each other,” Cox said. “[OITNB] created a space and platform for me as a black openly trans woman that created space for other openly trans women of all races to be truly seen in the depth of our humanity.”
Because She Watched is currently available to stream ahead of International Women’s Day, March 8. A full list of the women involved, as well as their contributions to the collection, are listed below:
Alejandra Azcárate (Colombia) – Vis a Vis
Alice Wu (United States) – Frances Ha
Andrea Barata Ribeiro (Brazil) – Sex Education
Anna Winger (Germany) – Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Ava DuVernay (United States) – A Wrinkle in Time
Barbara Lopez (Mexico) – Scandal
Beren Saat (Turkey) – Bird Box
Bruna Mascarenhas (Brazil) – Quien te cantará
Cecilia Suárez (Mexico) – Marriage Story
Chris Nee (United States) – Orange is the New Black
Christian Serratos (United States) – The Goop Lab
Cindy Bishop (Thailand) – Anne with an E
Elena Fortes (Mexico) – Atlantique
Esther Acebo (Spain) – Chef’s Table: Bo Songvisava
Fadily Camara (France) – How to Get Away with Murder
Fanny Herrero (France) – Je Parle Toute Seule
Fatimah Abu Bakar (Malaysia) – Babies
Francesca Comencini (Italy) – What Happened, Miss Simone?
Giovanna Ewbank (Brazil) – The Most Beautiful Thing
Hanna Ardéhn (Sweden) – Silence of the Lambs
Hazar Erguclu (Turkey) – House of Cards
Hend Sabry (Egypt) – Joan Didion: The Center Will Not Hold
Ida Elise Broch (Norway) – RuPaul’s Drag Race
Janet Mock (United States) – Paris Is Burning
Joyce Cheng (Hong Kong) – Queer Eye
Juliana Vicente (Brazil) – When They See Us
Kemi Adetiba (Nigeria) – King of Boys
Kiara Advani (India) – Lust Stories
Lali Espósito (Argentina) – Notting Hill
Lana Condor (United States) – Grace and Frankie
Lauren Morelli (United States) – Julie & Julia
Laurie Nunn (England) – The Keepers
Laverne Cox (United States) – A Call to Courage
Liz Garbus (United States) – She’s Gotta Have It
Logan Browning (United States) – Someone Great
Lynn Fainchtein (Mexico) – 2001:Space Odyssey
Marcela Benjumea (Colombia) – Dead to Me
Mercedes Morán (Argentina) – Aquarius
Mika Ninagawa (Japan) – In the Realm of the Senses
Millie Bobby Brown (United Kingdom) – Miss Americana
Mina El Hammani (Spain) – ¿Qué Co#o Está Pasando?
Mindy Kaling (United States) – Chewing Gum
Mira Lesmana (Indonesia) – ROMA
Mithila Palkar (India) – Hannah Gadsby’s Nanette
Nahnatchka Khan (United States) – Young Adult
Ngô Thanh Vân (Vietnam) – Wonder Woman
Nosipho Dumisa (South Africa) – Gravity
Pathy Dejesus (Brazil) – Raising Dion
Paulina Garcia (Chile) – Deux Jours, Une Nuit
Petra Costa (Brazil) – Feminists: What Were They Thinking?
Salma Hayek (Mexico) – Unbelievable
Sandi Tan (Singapore) – Russian Doll
Shefali Shah (India) – Delhi Crime
Sophia Loren (Italy) – The Crown
Yalitza Aparicio (Mexico) – Knock Down the House