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Saving Face

Directed by Daniel Junge and Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy
Pakistan / United States, 2011 (documentary, 40 minutes, colour, English / Urdu)
Also known as "Saving Face - Gebt mir mein Gesicht zurück"

Film Description:
"Every year in Pakistan, at least 100 people are victimized by acid attacks. The majority of these are women, and many cases go unreported. With little or no access to reconstructive surgery, survivors are physically and emotionally scarred, while many reported assailants—typically a husband or someone close to the victim—are let go with minimal punishment from the state. Saving Face tells the stories of two acid-attack survivors: Zakia, a 39-year-old whose husband threw acid on her after she filed for divorce, and Rukhsana, a 25-year-old whose husband and inlaws threw acid and gasoline on her, then set her on fire. Charting the arduous attempts to bring their assailants to justice, the film also follows plastic surgeon Dr. Mohammad Jawad, who put his London practice on hold to return to his home country to help Zakia, Rukhsana and other victims. [...] Saving Face is a powerful look inside Pakistani society, illuminating each woman's personal journey while showing how reformers are tackling this vexing problem though the passage of a new law that punishes convicted acid attackers with life imprisonment."
-- HBO Documentary Films (source)

Film Credits (partial):
Produced by: Davis Coombe, Alison Greenberg, Daniel Junge, Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy, Sabiha Sumar, Fazeelat Aslam, Asad Faruqi, Liz Heller, Aaron Kopp, Tanya Mirza, Shahbaz Sumar, Cathy Trekloff, Sheila Nevins
Cinematography: Aaron Kopp, Martina Radwan
Film Editing: Davis Coombe, Hemal Trivedi
Music: Gunnard Doboze
Production Company: HBO Documentary Films, JungeFilms, Milkhaus
(sources)

Award won by Saving Face

Web Sites about Saving Face


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