Fashion icon and global maternal health advocate, Christy Turlington Burns, will premiere her short film, 'Every Mother Counts: Obstetric Fistula,' at the 11th Annual LUNAFEST film festival on October 26 at Tribeca Cinemas. Eight other films will also be featured at the event, including 'Worst Enemy' by actress Lake Bell. The traveling film festival of award-winning short films by, for and about women, opens its doors at 6:30 p.m. to the public. The event will raise money and awareness for Turlington Burns' non-profit organization Every Mother Counts, an advocacy and mobilization campaign founded by Turlington Burns in 2010 to increase public awareness and support for improved maternal and child health, as well as the Breast Cancer Fund, an organization dedicated to identifying and advocating for the elimination of environmental causes of the disease.
Turlington Burns' short film, 'Every Mother Counts: Obstetric Fistula,' looks at one of the most common and heartbreaking morbidities resulting from poor maternal health care. The film was derived from her feature film and directorial debut, 'No Woman, No Cry,' which premiered in 2010 and attracted global attention.
'I am very honored to be able to partner with LUNA and The Breast Cancer Fund, two prominent organizations that have similar goals as Every Mother Counts: to raise awareness for women's health issues on a global front,' said Christy Turlington Burns, founder of Every Mother Counts. 'As a maternal health advocate and filmmaker, LUNAFEST is a great platform to premiere my short film, 'Every Mother Counts: Obstetric Fistula,' which was created to inform the public on the severity of the global maternal health crisis that affects millions of women each a year.'
This is the first year LUNAFEST has travelled to New York City. The season launched in San Francisco on September 22 and the films will be screened in more than 150 venues throughout the country, including Seattle, Chicago, Austin, and Los Angeles, until June. One hundred percent of ticket sales from the New York LUNAFEST premiere will benefit Every Mother Counts and the Breast Cancer Fund.
'Bringing LUNAFEST to New York and to Tribeca Cinemas is a milestone in LUNAFEST's history given Tribeca's heritage and role in the film festival community,' said Brooke Golden, LUNAFEST director. 'For the past 11 years, the festival has grown from a single annual event to a coast-to-coast force. To date, 92 filmmakers have been featured, nearly 1.2 million dollars has been raised and thousands of attendees have come away moved, entertained and inspired.'
LUNAFEST is created and funded by LUNA[R], the maker of the Whole Nutrition Bar for Women[R]. Information on the films, event details and ticket information is available at www.lunafest.org/nyc. About LUNA[R] LUNA[R] nourishes women with delicious snacks made with organic ingredients and the essential vitamins women need. LUNA connects, supports and celebrates women with programs such as LUNAFEST[R], a national traveling fundraising festival of short films by, for and about women, and Team LUNA Chix, an all-women's sport group inspiring women to learn new sports and be active. LUNA proudly donates one percent of its sales to a variety of women's nonprofits and the Breast Cancer Fund through the Clif Bar Family Foundation. (www.lunabar.com) About Every Mother Counts Every Mother Counts (http://www.everymothercounts.org/) is an advocacy and mobilization campaign founded by Turlington Burns in 2010 to increase public awareness of and support for improved maternal and child health. Now in its second year, Every Mother Counts seeks to engage new audiences to better understand the challenges and the solutions so that we can take action to improve the lives of families by improving the health of girls and women worldwide. About The Breast Cancer Fund The Breast Cancer Fund is the leading national organization working to identify and eliminate the environmental causes of breast cancer. www.breastcancerfund.org.
Keywords: Oncology, Pediatrics.
This article was prepared by Pediatrics Week editors from staff and other reports. Copyright 2011, Pediatrics Week via NewsRx.com.
