It's Just Movies

The poverty-fighting organization CARE and NCM Fathom announced their second annual International Women’s Day event that brings the best-selling book “Half the Sky” to life on the big screen for a special one-night presentation in select movie theaters nationwide. Inspired by moving stories from the critically-acclaimed book “Half the Sky” by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists Nicholas Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn, the “Half the Sky” event on March 4 at 7:30 p.m. local time will be an uplifting night of music, celebrity discussion and the world premiere of “Woinshet,” a powerful narrative documentary.

Directed by Academy Award® winner Marisa Tomei and Lisa Leone, “Woinshet” chronicles the struggles of an Ethiopian woman who triumphs over violence and discrimination.

Tickets are available to this special in-theater event at www.FathomEvents.com and presenting theater box offices. Visit www.halftheskylive.com for more information.

“‘Woinshet’ is an inspiration to the millions of women across the globe who face violence and oppression,” said Tomei. “My hope is that people will leave theaters not only cheering her on, but demanding that we end discrimination and horrible cruelty towards women.”

Building on the success of A Powerful Noise LIVE, CARE’s 2009 International Women’s Day event, the “Half the Sky” event also will feature musical performances and a panel discussion hosted by Andrea Mitchell, chief foreign affairs correspondent and Host of MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports.

Event panelists and performers include:

* India.Arie – GRAMMY Award® winner
* Maria Bello – Actress and activist
* Diane Birch – Singer-songwriter
* Michael Franti – American poet, musician and composer
* Sarah Ferguson – Duchess of York
* Dr. Helene Gayle – CARE president and CEO
* Angelique Kidjo – GRAMMY Award® winner
* Nicholas Kristof – Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, New York Times columnist and acclaimed author
* Rachel Mayanja – United Nations Assistant Secretary-General and Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women
* Marisa Tomei – Academy Award® winner
* Melanne Verveer – Ambassador-At-Large for Global Women’s Issues for the Obama Administration
* Sheryl WuDunn – Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and acclaimed author

The exclusive two-hour event will be recorded live at the Skirball Center for the Performing Arts at New York University on Feb. 11 and will be one of the most visible International Women’s Day celebrations on the planet. A portion of ticket sales will support CARE’s work in more than 70 countries.

“CARE is proud to once again celebrate International Women’s Day with a rousing one-night-only event in theaters across the country,” said Dr. Helene Gayle, president and CEO of CARE. “’Half the Sky’ is more than just a night at the movies – it’s a rallying cry to stand up and join a growing worldwide movement to empower women and girls to fight global poverty.”

Half the Sky Event will be shown in 484 select movie theaters including AMC Entertainment Inc., Celebration! Cinema, Cinemark USA Inc., Clearview Cinemas, Cobb Theatres, Goodrich Quality Theatres, Hollywood Theaters, Kerasotes Showplace Theatres, Marcus Theatres, National Amusements and Regal Entertainment Group movie theatres, as well as Bainbridge 5 (Seattle, WA), Carolina Theatre (Asheville, NC), Palace Cinema 9 (South Burlington, VT), Penn Cinema (Lititz, PA) and the Rose Theatre (Port Townsend, WA) through NCM’s exclusive Digital Broadcast Network – North America’s largest cinema broadcast network.

“Tens of thousands of Americans celebrated International Women’s Day last year with the exclusive in-theater CARE event that brought inspirational stories of women who are making a difference in their communities and motivated audiences to do the same,” said Dan Diamond, vice president of NCM Fathom. “NCM Fathom and CARE are partnering once again to present a very special evening of thought-provoking discussion that will highlight the challenges facing women around the world and what audiences can do to empower those women.”

Featured on “The Oprah Winfrey Show,” CNN and Dateline NBC, “Half the Sky” remains a New York Times bestseller and is a critical favorite across the globe. Tom Brokaw says the book’s stories about real women “will pierce your heart and arouse your conscience.”

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