Docuseek | Fly So Far

As states in the U.S. enact abortion bans, FLY SO FAR serves as a grave warning of how far government control of women’s bodies can go. This brave film from Swiss-Salvadorean filmmaker Celina Escher is set in El Salvador, a country with some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world, including the criminalization of those who experience miscarriages and other obstetric emergencies.

The narrative centers on Teodora Vásquez, who was in the ninth month of her second pregnancy when she fainted and suffered a stillbirth. When she woke up at the hospital, she was accused of murder and was sentenced to thirty years in prison for aggravated homicide. At Ilopango Women’s Prison, she becomes the spokesperson for The Seventeen, a group of working-class women who were all incarcerated after having miscarriages. Many of these same women became pregnant after being sexually assaulted. While it exposes brutal human rights abuses, FLY SO FAR is unmistakably a story of collective resistance, activism, sisterhood, as well as the self-determination and agency of women.

“Deeply moving and visually stunning cinematic testament to indomitable courage."
Jury Statement Seattle International Film Festival

“In an era where worldwide the sexual and reproductive rights of women are under serious pressure...this documentary shows that fighting human rights are not a luxury for the educated few but a universal necessity for people in less fortunate circumstances.”
Movies that Matter, Activist Documentary Award Jury Statement

“As the title FLY SO FAR declares, Vasquez goes from being crushed by poverty to being energized by taking political action in this inspiring story."
POV Magazine

“A truly empowering story of resilience and solidarity, FLY SO FAR is an unforgettable portrait of a reluctant activist determined to speak up be heard, not only for herself, but for all her sisters in the struggle against oppression.”
Hot Docs Film Festival

“[Teodora and The Seventeen’s] testimonies and cases are evidence of the State’s violence against women, but also of collective resilience, solidarity, and sisterhood.”
Guelph Film Festival

“Potent and deeply felt.”
Hebe Tabachnik, Senior Programmer, SIFF

"Highlights the hypocrisy and class prejudice surrounding El Salvador’s abortion laws."
Business Doc Europe

"[FLY SO FAR] portrays [Vazquez’s] life inside as well as after her release, showing the difficulties experienced by these women integrating back into society, particuarly given the stigma of the crime for which they were convicted."
RTL Today

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Main credits

Escher, Celina (film director)
Hernández Rejón, Mónica (film producer)
Åkesson, Maria (film producer)
Callejas, Saúl (film producer)
Vásquez, Teodoro del Carmen (on-screen participant)

Other credits

Cinematography, Guillermo Argueta [and 7 others]; original music, Mahan Mobashery, Nils Bucher; editing, Matteo Faccenda.

MARC Record See Worldcat record

Keywords

Reproductive rights,abortion,miscarriage,Latin America,pregnancy,women's health,human rights,; "Fly So Far"; Women Make Movies; Documentary Films; Reproductive Rights; Latin American Studies;

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Fly So Far

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