The films “He Named Me Malala” and “Tangerine” open Oct. 9 at UNL’s Mary Riepma Ross Media Arts Center.
“He Named Me Malala” is an intimate portrait of Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai and her fight for education for all girls worldwide. The film is directed by Davis Guggenheim, who made the Oscar-award winning “An Inconvenient Truth.”
Yousafzai, then 15 years old, was wounded when Taliban gunmen opened fire on her school bus in Pakistan’s Swat Valley. Targeted for speaking out on the need for girls to be educated, Yousafzai was shot in the head. The shooting sparked an international media outrage.
She has since emerged as a leading campaigner for the rights of children worldwide. In December 2014, Yousafzai became the youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.
“He Named Me Malala” is rated PG-13 (for thematic elements involving disturbing images and threats) and shows through Oct. 22.
Shot on an iPhone for practically no money, “Tangerine” features transgender actresses Mya Taylor and Kitana Kiki Rodriguez playing two Los Angeles hookers on the prowl on Christmas Eve.
In “Tangerine,” Sin-Dee Rella (played by Rodriguez) is on the hunt for her boyfriend/pimp, Chester (James Ransone), who was reportedly unfaithful during her recent stay in jail. Soliciting help from her best friend, Alexandra (Taylor), Sin-Dee’s search leads to an odyssey through various Los Angeles subcultures.
The film is directed by Sean Baker, whose previous movies include “Starlet” and “Prince of Broadway.”
“Tangerine” is rated R and shows through Oct. 15.
For more information, including show times, go to http://www.theross.org or call 402-472-5353.
