THE GIRLS IN THE BAND documentary, directed by JUDY CHAIKIN

 FESTIVAL AWARDS

Audience Award, Best Documentary Feature – Palm Springs International Film Festival

Audience Favourite Feature, Victoria Film Festival

Audience Choice Documentary, Omaha Film Festival

They wiggled, they jiggled, they wore low cut gowns and short shorts, they kow-towed to the club owners and smiled at the customers…and they did it all, just to play the music they loved.

THE GIRLS IN THE BAND tells the poignant, untold stories of female jazz and big band instrumentalists and their fascinating, groundbreaking journeys from the late 30′s to the present day.
These incredibly talented women endured sexism, racism and diminished opportunities for decades, yet continued to persevere, inspire and elevate their talents in a field that seldom welcomed them.Today a new breed of gifted young women are taking their rightful place in the world of jazz which can no longer deny their talents.

 DIRECTOR/PRODUCER: JUDY CHAIKIN

Judy Chaikin is a graduate of AFI’s Directing Workshop for Women and is best known for writing, producing and directing the Emmy nominated PBS documentary, “Legacy of the Hollywood Blacklist.” In 2004 she received her second Emmy nomination for the documentary “Building on a Dream:The NoHo Art Project.” Recently she directed and co-wrote the short romantic-comedy film, “Cotillion ‘65,” which has appeared in 40 film festivals winning Best Short, Best Comedy, Best Director and Audience Choice Awards.  Ms. Chaikin was a Supervising Producer/Segment Director on the ABC series, “FBI: The Untold Stories,” a Co-Producer of the CBS Movie Of The Week, “Stolen Innocence,” the Writer/Director of the bi-lingual PBS documentary, “Los Pastores” and in 1996 Chaikin won the Blue Ribbon at the American Educational Film and TV Festival for the docu-drama, “Sojourner Truth:Ain’t I A Woman,” featuring Julie Harris.  Her other directing work includes the MTV underground hit by Kommunity FK “Something Inside Me Has Died,” the Nickelodeon series “On The Television,” the Broadway production of “Yenta Unplugged” and the Odyssey Theater production of Martin Sherman’s “Rose.”

“Very MOVING…great characters and good story-tellers…great work.”
John Sayles, Director/Writer – Academy Award nominee, Writers Guild Award winner

“A POWERFUL, ENGAGING and enlightening film… a thrilling feminist portrayal … and the music is SUBLIME.”

Lynne Littman, Director – Academy Award winner
“A VIVID EXPERIENCE… I sat there watching and just wiping tears away…tears of joy.”

For more details visit:  http://www.thegirlsintheband.com