#WhenWeValueWomen
Inspired by the HBO Max and CNN Films Doc, Initiative Debuts December 13 in Partnership with Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
Kick-Off Event Includes Academy Award®-Winning Actor Geena Davis and Panel with Filmmakers and Notable Athletes; Findings of the Institute’s Sports Gender Bias Study Also Revealed
USWNT Star and World Cup Champion Jessica McDonald to Serve as Campaign Ambassador
WASHINGTON and Cincinnati, OH – (Dec. 2, 2021) – Everywoman Studios and the Oscar®-winning filmmakers at Change Content, the team behind HBO Max and CNN Films’ feature documentary LFG – which premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival and chronicles the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team’s battle for equal pay – have joined forces with Procter & Gamble (P&G) to launch a multi-faceted impact initiative inspired by the film and focused on gender equality in sports and beyond.
Under the #WhenWeValueWomen banner, the campaign will feature LFG screenings and events, digital and social engagements, grass roots community outreach and more. Jessica McDonald, USWNT star and World Cup champion, featured prominently in LFG, serves as the campaign’s ambassador.
P&G and its trusted brands, Always and Secret, are supporting the effort which aims to educate audiences and encourage institutions to take meaningful steps toward gender equality. The campaign will also facilitate partnerships with organizations and nonprofits dedicated to supporting women and girls, on and off the field. Athlete Ally, Equality League, Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media, Step Up, UN Women, and Women’s Sports Foundation have signed on as non-profit partners.
It all kicks off Monday, December 13 (6 p.m. EST/3 p.m. PST) with Academy Award®-winning actor Geena Davis and an illustrious virtual panel featuring the Institute’s President and CEO Madeline Di Nonno; LFG Producers/Directors Andrea and Sean Fine; Producer Abby Greensfelder; and University of Illinois track and field student athlete Gift Pendleton in an enlightening conversation moderated by Women’s Hockey Olympic Gold Medalist and President-Elect of the Women’s Sports Foundation Meghan Duggan, and will include notable findings of the Institute’s recent Sports Gender Bias Study (results reveal institutional bias at all levels of play, from high school through college and into the professional realm, with the degree of disparity increasing at each stage).
Prior to the event, all attendees will receive a link to screen LFG, which is also available on HBO Max.
“P&G recognizes that inequality in sports is representative of the challenges women still face in many workplaces today, which is why we are committed to supporting initiatives that help to level the playing field,” said Janet Fletcher, Senior Director, Sports Marketing at P&G. “We’re proud to be working together with our brands, the LFG filmmakers, and our collective non-profit partners to bring awareness to these issues and improve opportunities for female athletes and women in society overall.”
LFG’s Oscar®-winning directors and producers, Andrea Nix Fine and Sean Fine of Change Content, and Everywoman Studios CEO and the film’s producer Abby Greensfelder said, in a joint statement, “With LFG, it was an honor to document the U.S. women’s soccer team’s ongoing fight for equal pay. Now, we have the privilege and the responsibility to take inspiration from the women’s journey and help make a real-world impact on gender equality, for this generation and the ones to come. We are grateful to P&G for supporting this mission and for its commitment to building a more equitable world, and to the Geena Davis Institute for their valued participation in our inaugural event.”
P&G, Always and Secret are supporting the campaign as part of their ongoing gender equality initiatives, which leverage the company’s significant voice in advertising and media to tackle gender bias, while also removing barriers to education for girls and enabling economic opportunities for women.
Always has partnered with the campaign as part of the brand’s #KeepHerPlaying movement, which teams with trailblazing activists and athletes – including USWNT player Jess McDonald – encouraging girls to stay in sports to build confidence and important life skills. Meanwhile, Secret has teamed with the campaign as an extension of Just #WatchMe, which aims to eliminate the biases women athletes face by encouraging people to fill the stands and support women’s sports.
Learn how you can get involved at:
About “LFG”
LFG (Let’s F*cking Go) is a gripping documentary feature centering on the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team’s public — and controversial – fight for equal pay. LFG is told by the players themselves, including Megan Rapinoe, Jessica McDonald, Becky Sauerbrunn, Kelley O’Hara, Sam Mewis and others, and follows them through their historic lawsuit, which was filed against the U.S. Soccer Federation just three months before the team’s incredible World Cup victory. The film grants viewers unprecedented access to these game-changers as they meet the physical demands and pressures of being some of the world’s top athletes, while showcasing their courage, unflinching spirit and resiliency in an effort to create long-lasting social change. The film is currently available on HBO Max and is produced in association with CNNFilms.
About Change Content
Andrea Nix Fine and Sean Fine are award-winning filmmakers and producers whose raw, intimate storytelling style has been hailed by critics as “visually ravishing” and “enormously spirit-raising.” Their documentary-short Inocente (a coming-of-age story centering on a 15-year-old homeless, undocumented female immigrant in California) won an Oscar® in 2013 and was the first crowdfunded film to earn such a distinction. Previously, the Fines’ first feature-length documentary War/Dance, about child soldiers in Uganda, was nominated for an Academy Award® in 2007 and their 2013 HBO film Life According to Sam, about Sam Berns and his family’s fight to overcome progeria, and won both a Peabody and Emmy® for Exceptional Merit in Documentary filmmaking. In 2021, the Fines launched their impact studio Change Content with an edict to develop true stories into unforgettable narratives and docs that upend the way viewers think and feel about critical issues. They are proud to premiere LFG as the first of many projects that align with Change Content’s mission: True stories. True Impact. For more information, please visit Change Content’s website.
About Everywoman Studios
Everywoman Studios is a full-service media company, dedicated to female-fueled content that can create positive cultural impact. Founded in 2019 by veteran producer Abby Greensfelder – creator of global hits such as “Say Yes to the Dress” and “The Last Alaskans,” among others – Everywoman Studios currently has a range of non-fiction series and features in development and production across multiple networks and streamers. The company’s first feature documentary, “LFG,” premiered at the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival before launching on HBO Max. Greensfelder and Everywoman also founded “Propelle,” a content accelerator program for female producers and filmmakers. For more information, please visit Everywoman Studios’ website.
About P&G
P&G aspires to build a world free from gender bias with an equal voice, equal opportunity and equal representation for all individuals. Through their powerful voice in advertising, P&G brand campaigns are sparking conversations that motivate change. P&G is helping remove barriers to education for girls and economic opportunities for women while also creating an inclusive, gender-equal environment inside P&G—and advocating for gender-equal workplaces beyond P&G—where everyone can contribute to their full potential. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and information about P&G and its brands.
About Always
Always®, the world’s leader in menstrual protection, offers a wide range of pads, wipes and liners designed to fit different body types, period flows and preferences. For over 35 years, Always has been empowering millions of girls globally through puberty and confidence education, providing products to those in need and tackling societal barriers to their confidence through the Always #LikeAGirl movement. Together, Always believes we can create a world where neither periods nor gender get in the way of young people reaching their full potential. Please visit www.always.com for more information.
About Secret
Secret® was the first antiperspirant brand designed specifically for women, and for the past 60 years, Secret® has been on the forefront of women’s lives, leading with innovation designed to provide superior odor and wetness protection. Through the years, the brand has proudly supported women’s advancement and equality through its campaigns and communications. Its latest campaign, “All Strength, No Sweat,” is a continuation of this commitment to women, celebrating those who boldly challenge the status quo, push through barriers and stand up for what they believe in, without “sweating” the obstacles that may come their way. Secret® challenges women everywhere to be all strength, no sweat.
About the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
Founded in 2004 by Academy Award Winning Actor Geena Davis, the Institute is the only research-based organization working collaboratively within the entertainment industry to create gender balance, foster inclusion and reduce negative stereotyping in family entertainment media. Please visit www.seejane.org for more information. Please follow us @geenadavisorg