Northwest Film Forum

A canonical work of radical cinema, Lizzie Borden's feminist sci-fi treatise imagines a post-revolutionary world where women battle for their rights through the microphones of pirate radio. Produced in 1983 and set ten years in the future, the film mixes documentary footage with a sci fi setting to tell the story of two feminist groups running separate radio shows, while a nefarious FBI agent chases down the Women's Army. When their underground stations are destroyed, the women band together on a mission to take over mainstream media. Prescient depictions of issues around race, police brutality, violence against women, and media saturation still resonate today. The cast is dotted with Civil Rights activists, a basketball player and bodybuilder, a singer, plus, Kathryn Bigelow takes her first and only acting turn, as an intern at a socialist newspaper. Born in Flames won a special jury prize when it premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival.