“As I Open My Eyes” is opening Dec. 16 at the Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center. Also continuing to show is “The Eagle Huntress.”
Leyla Bouzid’s “As I Open My Eyes” is a story of a headstrong young woman in Tunisia who bucks her parents and repressive society.
This music-filled production is set in Tunis during summer 2010, a few months before a revolution. The film depicts the clash between culture and family as seen through the eyes of a young Tunisian woman. She balances the traditional expectations of her family with her creative life as the singer in a politically charged rock band.
“As I Open My Eyes,” which is not rated, and “The Eagle Huntress,” which is rated G, shows at the Ross through Dec. 22.
Directed by Otto bell, “The Eagle Huntress” is a documentary about Aisholpan, a 13-year-old girl nomadic Mongolian girl who breaks traditional role’s gender barrier. She trains to become the first female in 12 generations of her Kazakh family to become an eagle hunter. She rises to the pinnacle of a tradition that has been handed down from father to son for centuries.
This film features some of the most awe-inspiring cinematography ever captured in a documentary, giving this intimate tale of a young girl’s quest the dramatic force of an epic narrative film.