Only a third of the members of Dortmund City Council are female. The situation is no different in the NRW state parliament and the Bundestag. But "we are not just a third. We are half of society," says the cinema spot "SHE FOR DEMOCRACY".
The commercial has been running in Dortmund cinemas since December 12, 2024. Students from the Master's degree program "Film" and the Bachelor's degree program "Film and Sound" at Fachhochschule Dortmund produced it on behalf of the city's Equal Opportunities Office. The aim: to encourage women with different experiences and backgrounds to play an active role in shaping Dortmund's political landscape.
"This project not only underlines the university's social commitment, it is also an opportunity for our students to make a contribution through film and work under real-life conditions," says Prof. Sandra Hacker. She teaches in the Faculty of Design with a focus on film and knows how different commissioned work is compared to the otherwise often free student projects. Client wishes have to be taken into account and schedules and budgets have to be adhered to. The filming, which was very mobile and mostly took place in public outdoor areas, was also logistically more challenging than at fixed locations.
The professor is very satisfied with the result: "We succeeded in developing a commercial that understands the representation of social diversity as a matter of course and can appeal to different age groups," praises Sandra Hacker.
Credits
Accompanying campaign
The cinema spot will also be distributed via various social media channels and accompanied by an information screen campaign in Dortmund's subway stations, which the students also created. The motif for the accompanying poster campaign was photographed by a student from the "Photographic Studies" Master's study program in coordination with the student film team. In addition, brochures and postcards at central locations in the city ensure that the message is widely distributed. They provide information about the program, which was also developed in cooperation with TU Dortmund University, and show how women can get actively involved in politics. The campaign is supported by Dortmund councilwomen from various political groups, who act as role models and advocates for more female involvement in politics.
"With 'SHE FOR DEMOCRACY', we want to strengthen diversity in political decision-making processes and create a fairer representation of society - for a democracy that takes all perspectives into account," explains Maresa Feldmann, Equal Opportunities Officer for the City of Dortmund.
Further information and a brochure on "SHE FOR DEMOCRACY" with various workshops from the political program are now available online at www.dortmund.de/shefordemocracy(Opens in a new tab) .
Follow-up project to "Catcalling"
Last year, Fachhochschule Dortmund cooperated with the city's equal opportunities office to stage a socially relevant topic. The commercial "Catcalling" was shown in Dortmund cinemas at the end of 2023 and was also screened in the Filmpalästen in November of this year. It aimed to raise awareness of sexism and encourage men in particular to reflect on and change their behavior.
