Award-winning producer and voiceover actor Laurel Harris narrates "Shirin Ebadi: Until We Are Free", world premier at Venice International Film Festival on September 2nd

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 27, 2020 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Laurel Harris, an award-winning producer and voiceover actor narrates PeaceJam's newest documentary feature film, "Shirin Ebadi: Until We Are Free", directed by Dawn Gifford Engle—one of only 28 feature length films selected for the Venice International Film Festival's Gap Financing Market. The film hosts its World Premiere virtually on September 2, 2020. The film tells the story of Shirin Ebadi's struggle for women's rights and human rights in Iran.

Harris says, "It's been an honor to work with many remarkable Nobel Peace Laureates, including the Dalai Lama, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Shirin Ebadi, as part of the PeaceJam Nobel Legacy film series and to lend my voice to Shirin's story of fighting for women and children to be treated with basic human dignities."

Harris narrated the award-winning film—50 and counting—"The Dalai Lama - Scientist," which premiered to a standing ovation to a sold out crowd at the Venice International Film Festival in 2019. 

The first Muslim woman to ever receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Shirin Ebadi has inspired millions around the globe through her work as a human rights lawyer defending women and children against a brutal regime in Iran. 

Now, the film, "Until We Are Free," tells her story of courage and defiance in the face of a government out to destroy her, her family, and her mission: to bring justice to the people and the country she loves. The Iranian government would end up taking everything from Shirin Ebadi—her marriage, her home, even her Nobel Prize medallion. But the one thing it could never steal was her spirit to fight for justice and a better future for the women of Iran.       

This year's Venice Production Bridge Gap Financing Market will be the first project co- financing meeting to take place physically since the Covid-19 pandemic forced the cancellation of film and TV events around the world. To qualify for selection, feature-length film projects have to have at least 70% of financing in place.

To see the film trailer, visit: http://www.peacejam.org/shirin-ebadi-until-we-are-free
To see the Exclusive coverage in Variety International: https://variety.com/2020/film/global/laurel-harris-shirin-ebadi-venice-1234741342/

About Laurel Harris
Laurel Harris is a multi award-winning producer and American actress best known as Willem Dafoe's wife in the screen adaptation of Dean Koontz's best selling novel, "Odd Thomas." She's also loved by young girls worldwide for the American Girl film, "Saige Paints the Sky," opposite Jane Seymour; and as a chilling mommy-dearest-character in the cult classic, "The Creep Behind the Camera."  Her extensive TV Credits include ABC, NBC, CW and Disney, and feature films with STARZ, Paramount and Fusion. Harris garnered an EMMY from the Heartland Chapter as well as multiple NATOA and TELLY Awards. As a producer, Laurel has worked with many notable figures, including Nobel Peace Laureates Archbishop Desmond Tutu and His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Traveling the world to film their stories and work alongside teams from the BBC and PBS, Harris has developed a passion for creating film content that highlights underserved populations.         
           
About PeaceJam
Peace Jam is a 501c3 non-profit entity behind the Nobel Peace Laureates film series, including the latest installment: "Shirin Ebadi: Until We Are Free," which will be part of the Venice Film Festival digital library, along with a second film from the series, "Children of the Light," the first film to capture the life of Archbishop Desmond Tutu. Their award-winning documentary, "The Dalai Lama - Scientist," has since been translated into nine languages, garnered over 50 awards worldwide, screened in 48 different countries, gained distribution on over a dozen platforms, earned an exclusive deal with Google Play/Vimeo, and partnered with Gravitas Ventures for international distribution before delivering a world premier on Amazon. Community screenings of the film were held around the world in honor of the 30th Anniversary of the Dalai Lama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, and an educational distribution deal has also been signed with Kanopy, which will focus on selling the film to universities, colleges and libraries, along with an enhanced study guide.   

About the Venice International Film Festival Gap Financing Market
During the three days of the Venice Gap-Financing Market, 52 projects from all over the world will be presented in the last stages of development and financing.  More than 270 projects received from all over the world have been received and the selection reflects the great diversity of styles, backgrounds, contents, points of view and budgets of the candidate projects.  Only 6 of the 52 projects are documentaries.

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