By Jayleigh Lewis
September was a busy month for the Red Tent movie, Things We Don’t Talk About; 17 screenings were held in a variety of locations, including Canada and Australia! Isadora, the filmmaker, attended all but the Australian screening, making it a busy month for her as well. Even with all that travel, she still found the time to share a bit about her experiences at three of the screenings that took place in California, during the second week of September.
In Malibu, California, September 6th marked the beginning of the first Goddess Spirit Rising conference, a three-day gathering of about 150 women who came together for workshops and rituals honoring the feminine spirit. A Jewish boys’ camp was transformed for the weekend into women’s sacred space, attracting many well-known presenters, including foremothers of modern women’s spirituality Z Budapest, Vicki Noble, and Kathy Jones to this beautiful location by the ocean, north of Los Angeles.
The Red Tent movie screening took place in the evening of September 7th, in the camp’s biggest indoor space, the main hall, which for the duration of the gathering was dubbed the “Heart of the Goddess.” It was well-attended and well-received. Isadora had the opportunity to speak to many women throughout the weekend about the Red Tent.
Tuesday, September 10th found the filmmaker in Escondido, California, just north of San Diego. A movie screening was held in the Goddess Studio, a privately-owned space located on top of a mountain, which regularly hosts women’s events, including ceremony, workshops, belly dance classes, and Red Tent gatherings. The space’s owner, Amalya, was host of this packed screening; among the attendees were some local radio producers, including Karen Tate, whose Blog Talk Radio show “Voices of the Sacred Feminine” is internationally known.
On September 11th, Suzanne Toro, radio broadcaster and practicing shaman, hosted the next screening at Sacred Roots Holistic Healing, in Long Beach, California. The packed room included two young girls who were attending with their mother; the youngest, who was about a year old, walked in front of the projector during the chapter of the movie called “For Our Daughters.” She became an unconscious symbol of the theme of this chapter, which is about how the Red Tent movement creates a strong foundation for girls to grow up knowing their beauty and power, as the movie continued to play, projected onto her chest!
A Red Tent gathering followed this screening; during this time, women had the opportunity to participate in a “Hugging Snowball.” This is an activity where each woman is encouraged to give a hug to one of her sisters, as well as a small card on which is printed the word “smile.” Once each woman in the room has been hugged, she is equipped to carry the energy of sisterhood out into her community by giving the card to someone else she encounters. This is a way to allow the spirit of the Red Tent to expand beyond the walls of a particular gathering and touch many who might benefit from it.
One screening at a time, the Red Tent movie is doing the same: carrying the spirit of the Red Tent out into the world, bringing its gentle but powerful breath of encouragement to girls and women everywhere.