the stories that I'm telling.

Tag: documentary

  • Watching the Dream, Girl premiere in NYC (and how you can see it too!)

    Watching the Dream, Girl premiere in NYC (and how you can see it too!)

    Quick note off the top: Dream, Girl will be on a quick tour through Ottawa, Waterloo, and Toronto during the first week of November! Today I’m writing about my trip to see the film in New York, but I already have my ticket to see it again in Toronto, and you can get yours here!

    As alluded to in previous posts (ages ago, I know), I went to New York City to see the official world premiere of Dream, Girl – the incredible documentary about female entrepreneurs.

    Dream, Girl is the brain child of Erin Bagwell, who quit her job and launched a kickstarter campaign to create a feature length film inspired by the incredible female entrepreneurs she was meeting through her storytelling blog, Feminist Wednesday.

    The film’s co-producer, Komal Minhas has been one of my best friends for nearly 10 years, so of course I bought my ticket to see Dream, Girl in New York as soon as possible. I wasn’t even sure I’d be able to go, but supporting this film felt important. Fortunately, it worked out that I was actually able to make it to New York City to see the premiere!

    It was a quick 24 hours in NYC, and totally worth it.

    Kevin dropped me off at the airport, and I landed in La Guardia much sooner than expected. So much sooner that I’d forgotten to read my necessary-travel-prep articles in WikiTravel. I’d never been to New York, so I got off the plane with no real clue where I was or how to get where I was going. Fortunately, New Yorkers are super nice and helpful. In the first hour I easily asked 5 different people for help or directions.

    Finally, I made it to Central Park and met up with Julie, another best friend from my days at Carleton. We were crashing in an AirBnB with another friend, and after a bit of sun in the park we headed back to the apartment to get ready for our night on the town.

    Clothes. Makeup. Hair. Before long we were ready to go. I also made a dicey shoe choice that my feet regretted for the rest of the night, but we felt and looked great.

    Which was good, because we were just a brief subway trip away from the Dream, Girl red carpet. Naturally, I forgot my camera, but luckily Getty Images was there to cover for me:

    I’d already seen the film in Washington, DC, and was excited to see it again. After seeing the film with Kevin and my parents at the White House, we’d had some really great conversations about the film and about women in business. Those conversations had me excited to see it again.

    I’ve already said it, but after seeing this film twice, it really is great. The most easily comparable film is Miss Representation, which I’ve seen at least 5 times. To those who’d make the comparison, I’d say the concept is similar, but the execution and end product are totally different. By focusing on the stories of individual women, each re-watch draws you in with something new. I couldn’t watch Miss Representation a 6th time, but I can’t wait to watch Dream, Girl a 3rd, 4th, etc.

    The range of women in the film brings something for everything, and you’ll be sitting at the end of the film wondering which entrepreneur is most like you. When you friend turns to you and says “you’re totally a [insert name here]”, your heart will swell with joy.

    Once the film was over,  we headed to the after party. Which means a group of 20+ women – all friends and supporters of Komal – trekked onto the subway to the Hotel on Rivington for a rooftop party. As subway rides go, that one was pretty surreal. Consider that 7 hours previous, I was in Toronto. And now I was standing in the New York subway system trying to figure out how to get to the after party for my friend’s first ever film premiere.

    Travelling hours and hours to see your friend in her glory is pretty amazing. But as a side effect, I got to spend my evening with some of the most impressive women I know. Women who are honest about their struggles, who are hilarious, and who are unapologetically ambitious and excited for the future.

    I headed back to Toronto the very next day, already looking forward to the next screening & gathering of lady powerhouses.

    And now, Dream, Girl is screening in Ottawa, Waterloo, and Toronto during the first week of November. I strongly encourage you to book your tickets and watch this film with your own best friends. I have a feeling it’ll make you excited for the future.

    Here are more photos from the premiere, courtesy of Komal’s fiancee Mitch (who has been graciously photographing our antics for years):

     

     

  • Dream, Girl Field Trips: We went to the White House!!

    Dream, Girl Field Trips: We went to the White House!!

    ** Updated to include more photos of people other than just me 🙂

    I’m currently writing this from my gate at Pearson Airport. My computer and phone are both charging because I forgot to plan ahead for battery power while travelling. I also forgot my business cards, once again.

    I’m heading to New York City this morning to join my university gal pals as we watch the world premiere of Dream, Girl, a documentary produced by our very own best friend, Komal Minhas.

    The fun thing about being 26 is that all your friends who were totally floundering at 22 (and we talked about it non. stop.) are coming into their own with amazing achievements and careers, and accomplishing their dreams.

    Of course, I’ve already seen Dream, Girl. I saw it’s first ever public screening on May 26th when my family and I roadtripped to the White House!

    I bought my ticket to the New York premiere the day they went on sale, but with a trip to DC for a screening, I wasn’t sure I’d make it to New York City as well. But after seeing the documentary, and realizing that in NYC I’d be watching this incredible story about female CEOs with some of the most powerful and creative women that I know, the premiere event was no longer optional. I booked my flight to New York just a couple of days after returning home from DC.

    I’ll back up a second here though, to remind you that we went to the White House!!!

    Through the type of creative hard work, charm, and networking that characterizes so many of Komal’s achievements, Dream, Girl was screened at the White House for family, friends, and public. It was a pre-event for the United State of Women Summit being held this week.

    When Komal told me about the screening, and I told Kevin and my parents, we all immediately agreed that we should go. I mean, you don’t say no to an opportunity to go to the White House.

    And so on Thursday May 26th, the four of us piled into my mom’s cushy SUV and drove to DC at 6am. It was a beautiful day, and a beautiful scenic drive. We arrived in DC to check quickly into our hotel, get changed, and then Uber over to the White House!

    Seeing familiar faces in foreign places is one of the great joys of life, and I was so pleased to see that so many of our friends had made the trek to DC to support Komal and her co-producer Erin in their White House debut.

    The documentary, as expected, was excellent in every way. Not only was it beautifully produced, but it shines a light on some of the most incredible business women you could imagine. It’s inspirational, educational, heart warming, and so much more. I am so grateful and so glad that this film exists.

    After dinner, my family and I went for dinner at a great restaurant called Vidalia, and had some truly eye-opening conversations about entrepreneurship, women in business, and the power of helping your network to succeed. We spend a lot of time at our house talking about business, but it’s rare that we have deep conversations about the challenges and achievements of women in business. For me, that alone was worth the drive.

    We didn’t take many photos that day, but those we did are attached below.

    I’m hopping on my flight now, and will be in NYC soon to check out Dream, Girl’s World Premiere and surround myself with the infectious excitement of women accomplishing their dreams.

    The Dwight D Eisenhower Executive Office Building – the building within the White House complex where we saw the film!
    And that’s the White House right behind us!
    Me, Kevin, and my parnets
    At the post-film reception with Noah, Taylor, Komal, me, and Kevin
    The creators of the film, Erin Bagwell & Komal Minhas
    The Q&A panel after the film, which was absolutely the best Q&A I’ve ever attended
    The “Dream Team” – film & distribution crew!
    The stars of the film!
    Mitch showing off an front page article in the Ottawa Citizen highlighting Dream, Girl at the White House
    Komal and her family
    the Q&A