Fox Searchlight's 'He Named Me Malala' Opens Telluride Film Festival
21st Century Fox Social Impact
He Named Me Malala, Fox Searchlight's upcoming documentary about 18-year old Pakistani activist and Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, opened the 42nd Telluride Film Festival in Colorado on Friday, September 4, becoming the first ever documentary chosen as the festival's "Patron Preview," a first-anywhere screening that is open only to the festival's biggest supporters. Director Davis Guggenheim (Waiting for Superman, An Inconvenient Truth) was on hand to introduce the film and participate in a post-screening Q&A.
The documentary follows Malala's life both before and after she was attacked on her school bus in October 2012 by Taliban gunmen objecting to her activism for the rights of women and girls. She suffered multiple gunshot wounds, only to make a miraculous recovery and return to public life as an international advocate for girls' education. In October 2014, she became the youngest ever recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize.
Fox Searchlight will distribute the film, opening in the US on October 2. The theatrical release will be followed by a spring television broadcast on the National Geographic Channels, airing in 171 countries and 45 languages. Many other 21st Century Fox businesses have supported the film and are helping brings its inspiring message to as many people as possible.
"This is a film that leaves you not only feeling incredibly inspired but truly wanting to make a difference," said National Geographic Channels CEO Courteney Monroe. "We are... dedicating our collective resources to bring Malala's important journey and advocacy for girls' education to millions of people worldwide."
The film's launch will coincide with an international advocacy and fundraising campaign in partnership with the Malala Fund, which awards grants to nonprofits working around the world to empower adolescent girls through a quality secondary education.
