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Antifeminist

Leia (late 20s) is an up-and-coming feminist blogger. She receives a mysterious package, with an invitation to a secret soiree. When she arrives to the elegant villa, she finds an all- female event with all-male servants. Each room presents a different world, with exhibits of extreme feminist views. As Leia objects, she understands her writing inspired the evening. She is woken by her flatmate, Martha, claiming Leia had a nightmare. Leia, unconvinced, finds clues to the opposite. SIX MONTHS LATER: Leia is on a talk show, where she explains her new perspective on feminism.

  • Sofija Sztepanov
    Director
    Less Serendipitous Ways, Primitive, No Need for Excuses, Tinder Will Understand
  • Sofija Sztepanov
    Writer
    Less Serendipitous Ways, Primitive, No Need for Excuses, Tinder Will Understand
  • Tünde Bodnár
    Writer
    SAS: Red Notice, 129, Tide
  • Tünde Bodnár
    Producer
    SAS: Red Notice, 129, Tide
  • Sofija Sztepanov
    Producer
    Less Serendipitous Ways, Primitive, No Need for Excuses, Tinder Will Understand
  • Daniel Kresmery
    Producer
    SAS: Red Notice, Archive
  • Leila Saint James
    Key Cast
    "Leia"
    Never Grow Old, Hannah Arendt
  • Magdalena Korpas
    Key Cast
    "Marta"
    Pogarda, Labyrinths
  • Tünde Bodnár
    Key Cast
    "Victoria"
    SAS: Red Notice, 129, Tide
  • Barnabás Réti
    Key Cast
    "Barista 1"
    Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, World War Z, The Spy who Dumped me, Being Julia
  • Alexandra Szűcs
    Key Cast
    "Socialite 1"
    Hanna, Gemini Man, Mars
  • Kincső Pethő
    Key Cast
    "Psychiatrist 1"
    Red Sparrow, The Alienist
  • Una Kovac
    Key Cast
    "Tech Girl"
  • Csenge Tálas
    Key Cast
    "Socialite 2"
    Curtiz
  • Lory Simonetti
    Key Cast
    "Priestess"
    Story of my Life
  • Márton Nagyszokolyai
    Key Cast
    "Barista 2"
    Aurora Borealis, Ransom
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Drama, Mystery, Comedy, Horror, Women
  • Runtime:
    27 minutes 12 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    September 5, 2019
  • Production Budget:
    12,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Hungary
  • Country of Filming:
    Hungary
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    RED 8K
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:35:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Reykjavík International Film Festival
    Reykjavík
    Iceland
    October 1, 2019
    World Premiere
    Golden Egg Award Nomination
  • New York Shortie Film Festival
    New York
    United States
    October 2, 2019
    North American Premiere
    Official Selection / Best Cinematographer
  • Berlin Obscura Film Festival
    Berlin
    Germany
    October 17, 2019
    German Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Madrid Indie Film Festival
    Madrid
    Spain
    November 15, 2019
    Spanish Premiere
    Official Selection
  • Top Shorts Film Festival
    Istanbul
    Turkey
    January 27, 2020
    Turkish Premiere
    Official Selection
  • 73rd Salerno International Film Festival
    Salerno
    Italy
    November 15, 2019
    Italian Premiere
    Best Foreign Short Film
  • Florence Film Festival and Award
    Florence
    Italy
    April 18, 2020
    Best Director
  • Golden Nugget Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    April 24, 2020
    UK Premiere
    Best Director
  • London X4 - Seasonal Short Film Festival
    London
    United Kingdom
    May 23, 2020
    Special Mention
Director Biography - Sofija Sztepanov

Sofija Sztepanov is a Serbian-Hungarian writer-director for film. She has written and directed two short films: her first short film, ‘Tinder Will Understand’ (2016) premiered at the Raindance Film Festival and was also shown at the Femme Filmmakers Festival (2017). She was a jury member of the Giornate Degli Autori - Venice Film Festival (2017) and the LUX Film Prize Ambassador. Most recently she has been selected as the participant of the Reykjavík International Film Festival’s Talent Program with her first feature film script. ‘Antifeminist’ is her biggest project to date.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Dear Sir/Madam,

I’m Sofija Sztepanov, the writer-director of Antifeminist – the movie. I wanted to tell you about why I made this film and why I find its topic so important.

The first thing that I need to clarify is that Antifeminist is not an anti-feminist film. Despite its provocative title, the film actually sets out to defend feminism in the face of the huge controversy that surrounds it in recent years in the media, and subsequently misleads the public perception of feminism. The film speaks out against extremism and men-hating, and it tries to encourage people to rethink what the true message of feminism really is.

Only 34% of women called themselves feminist in the UK (2018 YouGov poll), 33% in France and a mere 8% did so in Germany. On the other hand, 8 out of 10 respondents said that men and women should be treated equally in every way, agreeing sexism is still an issue.

So, what is it in the word “feminist” that brings the grand majority of people to say that they are not one? Answers vary from – “I do not want to be equal to men in all senses” to something as simple as “I like men”. But probably one of the most interesting answers came in the shape of the question: “What is a modern feminist?”

And that is exactly the topic of this film. The film follows a popular feminist blogger who, through a nightmare-like experience, finds herself reevaluating what feminism means for her, what a modern feminist is, and where the movement is heading in the 21st century.

All of this I tried to convey through an entertaining Eyes Wide Shut and Alice in Wonderland-like visually captivating narrative. The film was shot in five different locations – two of which were royal castles, with a crew of 60 individuals (majorly composed of women), 50 actors and extras. I got to work with an incredibly inspiring cinematographer - Eszter Csepeli, with whom we decided to shoot the film in 8K- a Hungarian gaffer legend - Miklós Hajdu - and international actors spanning from Brazil to the UK.

In the spirit of independent filmmaking, we raised our funds through crowdfunding and searched for sponsors to help our project. We were the first Hungarian film to be fully sponsored by ARRI; we received authorizations from the publicists of prestigious writers such as J.K. Rowling and J.R.R. Tolkien to mention their works in the film; we were supported by Prop Club, a very prestigious prop company, and several Hungarian fashion brands. We shot for seven days in absolutely stunning locations with a fantastic team.

The team and I would be honored if the film could be shown with you. We hope to hear from you soon.

Best Wishes
Sofija Sztepanov