Photo credit: PhilStar.com
Filipino-American film director Ramona Diaz, the woman behind such acclaimed documentaries as Imelda, The Learning and Don’t Stop Believin’: Everyman’s Journey, was recently hailed one of 100 Most Influential Filipina Women in the World by the Filipina Women’s Network (FWN).
The Filipina Women’s Network is a San Francisco-based non-profit professional organization for women of Philippine ancestry with members worldwide.
The Global FWN100 Awards honor Filipino women who are changing the face of leadership in their local communities and in the countries they now call home.
It is a much deserved accolade for Diaz, whose film Imelda, a full-length documentary about the former First Lady of the Philippines, garnered the Excellence in Cinematography Award for documentary at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival and the ABCNews VideoSource Award from the IDA.
In an interview with FWN, Diaz said she makes films about “the Filipino experience for a global audience.”
“We are often represented as minor characters, even in our own narratives. We seldom see ourselves represented on the screen in a lead role,” Diaz noted.
Through her films, she intends to make a difference in the way Filipinos are projected.
“I hope to be impactful by changing those expectations and bringing our experiences to a global, mainstream audience,” she said.
The best part of being a Filipina woman leader is “upending expectations and stereotypes.”
Not that it has been easy. She told FWN: “Being a woman in the film industry is challenging enough. Being a woman of color in the film industry is a double whammy. Every day is about making myself visible and heard.”
Read more here.
Story courtesy of PhilStar.