The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Santa Barbara/Tri-Counties Region has presented this year’s Santa Barbara International Film Festival ADL Stand Up Award to “Liberté: A Call to Spy,” a dramatic portrayal of the true stories of the first women recruited and sent by the British military to occupied France with orders to disrupt the Nazi war machine.
The courageous heroism of soldiers risking their lives to counter the Nazis is not a new story. It is new, at least for the big screen, that the heroes featured in “Liberté” are women, and it is certainly worth discussing why it has taken so long for their stories to be celebrated in this way.
What made these women remarkable, in addition to the challenges they had to overcome as “lady spies,” was the strength of their common conviction despite their varied identities and experiences.
The lead characters enter frame in “Liberté” bound by how the world sees them — an American foreign servant with a disability, a Muslim pacifist of Indian heritage, and a Romanian Jew fearing deportation.
By the end of the story, their shared commitment to defend the human dignity of others supersedes any limiting labels, and their diversity proves critical to the success of their respective missions.
A jury of local ADL staff and supporters annually present the ADL Stand Up Award to a film in the festival that exemplifies the impact storytelling can have in fostering mutual understanding and respect, consistent with ADL’s mission “to secure justice and fair treatment for all.”
Given the recent and deeply troubling trend of rising hate and violence directed toward religious, racial and ethnic minorities in the U.S. and around the world, ADL is proud to stand up with these filmmakers in highlighting the real-life heroism of standing up to fear-based aggression towards others solely on account of who they are.
“Liberté: A Call to Spy” is directed by Lydia Dean Pilcher, and stars Sarah Megan Thomas (“Equity”), who also wrote the screenplay and produced; Stana Katic (“Castle”); and Radhika Apte (“Andhadhun”).
The festival’s U.S. premiere of “Liberté” will be on Jan. 16. ADL will host a cocktail Soireé in honor of the Stand Up Award at 6:15 p.m. in the Lobero Theater Courtyard, followed by the film’s premier at 7:40 p.m. in the Fiesta 5 Theater with a Q&A after with Pilcher and Thomas.
Tickets to ADL’s Soireé, which include a confirmed seat at the 7:40 p.m. screening, can only be purchased at support.ADL.org/STANDUP2020 or by calling 805-564-6670. Limited general admission to the film will be available for film festival pass or ticket holders.
The film will also screen at the Metro 2 Theater at 2:20 p.m. Friday, Jan. 17, and 5:20 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18, for festival pass or ticket holders.
This is the fifth year ADL has sponsored its Stand Up Award. Previous winners explored the lives of a drag performer in Cuba (“Viva” 2016); Polish migrant workers in Sweden (“Strawberry Days” 2017); Syrian refugees seeking passage to Berlin (“Sky and Ground” 2018); and a team of basketball players with disabilities (“Campeones” 2019).
This year’s Soireé is sponsored in part by the Jewish Federation of Greater Santa Barbara. For information about sponsorship opportunities, contact ADL, 805-564-6670.
ADL, founded in 1913, is among the world’s leading organizations fighting bigotry, hatred, and discrimination. Learn more at www.adl.org. ADL’s Santa Barbara/Tri-Counties Office was established in 2001.
— Dan Meisel for Anti-Defamation League Santa Barbara/Tri-Counties Region.