Today is International Women’s Day, a fact that probably hasn’t escaped your attention if you’ve spent a moment online.
Margaret is proud to be a women-led company. As we are cultural creatures at heart,
we thought we’d take the opportunity to turn the spotlight on some of the women
and women-led collectives we admire – people doing amazing things in the
cultural space, forging change and opening our eyes to different narratives and perspectives.
In the spirit of today’s celebration, we wanted to share with you a number of
inspirational women and their incredible work, who bring together communities
that ultimately create a positive social impact!
Refugee Buddy Project
Originally starting in 2017 as a community group to provide a welcome for people who had recently arrived in Hastings seeking refuge and safety, the Refugee Buddy Project is now a registered charity supporting over 40 families through buddying, advocacy and financial and emotional support & has opened a community cafe and gallery. The project was founded by Rosanna Leal, who herself found refuge and welcome in the UK in the 70s after fleeing the brutal Pinochet regime in Chile. It’s a truly inspirational story of the power of ‘paying it forward’.
Gorp Girls
Founded by Hannah Da Silva, Gorp Girls is a collective championing women and the outdoors, seeking to empower women to make connections with each other and with nature through city-safe running, hiking and climbing.
We love to see anything that forges and deepens our connections with the natural world and democratises access, so Gorp Girls is always a favourite.
We Are Parable
Co-founded by the brilliant Teanne Andrews, We Are Parable is an organisation dedicated to creating opportunities for audiences around the world to experience and respond to black cinema and television in culturally relevant, unique and memorable ways.
In 2020, We Are Parable launched Momentum, a programme designed to support black filmmakers and content creators based in Britain by providing them with mentoring, mental health workshops and access to industry professionals. Returning in late 2023, Momentum is now supported by Channel 4, Channel 4 Skills and Sony Pictures Television.
The GALPAL Collective
This Irish, Dublin-based GALPAL Collective will be hosting a four day festival celebrating International Women’s Day through workshops, night events, screenings and panel talks, all centred around the women contributing to Irish filmmaking.
The community itself is dedicated to community cultivation, creation / support of works by queer folk, POC, migrants and women.
Common Wealth
Common Wealth is a Bradford & Cardiff based, women-founded theatre collective, making site-specific theatre events that encompass electronic sound, new writing, visual design and verbatim. The collective’s work is political and contemporary, addressing concerns of our times and is staged in unexpected venues in the heart of the community; a residential house, a boxing gym, with the idea that theatre should belong to everyone, not just the middle classes and those that can afford it.
In the words of Common Wealth: “We see our plays as campaigns, as a way of bringing people together and making change feel possible.”
Mentoring Matters
Mentoring Matters is a mentoring scheme and community interest company that aims to redress the balance of equality and opportunity in the creative industries. The collective aims to give people a broader insight into different career paths.
Shasha Movies
Róisín Tapponin is the founder of Shasha Movies, an independent streaming service, distributor and curatorial platform for South-West Asian and North African Film and Video. Having been invited to curate a multitude of film programmes (ranging from The Academy to the MoMa), Roísín also founded the Habibi collective, Art Work Magazine and Independent Iraqi Film Festival.
Girls On Tops
Celebrating female filmmakers in a male-dominated industry, Girls On Tops uses the iconic white t-shirt, black lettering to highlight notable names. After Tracy Letts wore a GRETA GERWIG t-shirt on the red carpet at the Lady Bird premiere at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival, the collective have truly made their mark on the scene.
