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How do we really make a difference? Well, a new generation of films tackling male violence against women is showing us just how powerful art can be. While we need protests and essays and speeches, sometimes, it is the simple power of storytelling that inspires the greatest action.
Take the Suzie Miller's searing play, Prima Facie, which starred Jodie Comer and ran on the West End in 2022 before being released in cinemas through NT Live. The filmed play was re-released in cinemas this month.
The one-woman play tells the simple but brutally painful story of a defence barrister who finds herself reconsidering everything she believed about the legal system after undergoing a sexual assault. Her harrowing journey sees her transform from a cold, legal mastermind into a confused, distraught witness, let down by the very system she once had so much faith in.
‘There was a lot of women in front of and behind the camera. It was invaluable to me. Not being a mother myself, there were a lot of unknowns.’
“The law of sexual assault spins on the wrong axis,” she says in an impassioned speech as she pleads her case. "A woman’s experience of sexual assault does not fit the male-defined system of truth. So it cannot be truth, and therefore there cannot be justice. The law has been shaped by generations and generations of men.”
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Despite her eloquence and her clearsighted view of the flaws of the law when it comes to cases of sexual assault, she loses her case and her abuser is found not guilty. It's an all-too-common ending. In the UK, there is thought to be a conviction rate of less than 2% in sexual assault cases.
This disturbing figure may be something you already know. But until you see something like Prima Facie, which forces you to actually experience what that number actually means — to actually live through the injustice of it — it's hard to actually wrap your head around it.
What's fascinating is that seeing the play either live or on the screen inspires viewers not only to reflect, but also to act. Remarkably, it has led to lasting and ongoing real-world change.
“Through NT Live and NT at Home, we have made it possible for over half a million people to see Jodie Comer’s peerless performance and experience the power of this remarkable play," says Kate Varah, executive director of the NT. "It simply wouldn’t be possible to reach these numbers in a theatre. This accessibility allows the powerful stories told through theatre to drive real-world change.”
For one thing, it has inspired numerous women to find their own voice. “Women who had never spoken about a rape perpetrated against them found courage to tell their close people and many gave evidence to law enforcement,” playwright Suzie Miller tells us. “I know Jodie Comer and the producers join me in the humbling experience of reading so many messages of individual life changing experiences that came about after watching the play live or on NT Live.”
So many women reached out about the life-changing impact of the play, the film's producer, James Bierman, reached out to Everyone's Invited, a charity that offers a safe space for victims of sexual assault to share their stories.
“The act of watching Prima Facie enables and encourages survivors to confront and share their own real-world experiences, helping individuals have the confidence to share their stories and underlining the need for a safe space for survivors,” says Soma Sara, Founder of Everyone's Invited.
But the play has also inspired changes to the system itself.
The filmed version of the play is now being used for judicial education in a number countries. It's included as a module for secondary school consent education. It is used as an education tool in continuing education of various parts of the UK Police force. It has even been used as source in legal changes here in the UK.
“A Northern Ireland-born High Court Judge at the Old Bailey had the influence to include a viewing of the NT Live version of the play be mandatory viewing for judges in Northern Ireland,” says Miller. “Another Judge called me to say after seeing the play live she had redrafted the direction to the jury on rape law incorporating some of the language and messages of the play.”
The play has also led to the creation of TESSA (The Examination of Serious Sexual Assault Law) by four London barristers, as Miller says, “to interrogate how they can contribute their knowledge to changing the law from within.”
Kate Parker, a former barrister and founder of the Schools Consent Project, has used the play as part of her work to educate young people about the nuances of consent.
“As far as the Schools Consent Project is concerned, Prima Facie has been transformative,” she says. “Since the play's first run in London in 2022, we have seen a 52% yearly rise in workshops, which means 245 additional consent workshop were delivered to approximately 8,500 young people. This brings our total number to 55,000 students educated about consent.”
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Parker also launched a New York branch of the charity when the play travelled to Broadway. “We've now taught consent to over 5000 students in NYC, including in Spanish. We've fundraised over £150,000 globally as a direct result of the play.”
And Prima Facie isn't the only work of art tackling violence against women that's having a tangible, real-world impact.
The Schools Consent Project also worked with another recent work of art as part of their campaign. They partnered with Molly Manning-Walker's How To Have Sex, a 2023 film about a teenage girl who is sexually assaulted during a rites-of-passage holiday in Malia.
“The film skilfully depicts a rite-of-passage holiday for three teenagers as they navigate their first sexual encounters and experience of sexual violence," says Parker. “We offer our schools an opportunity to watch the film followed by a consent workshop which examines the three assault scenes in detail.”
While workshops and discussions about the topic might have been “seen as sensitive or awkward,” the film allowed them to "have some really honest and in-depth conversations about relatable real-world scenarios.”
We must pay attention to the bystanders of abuse.
Then there is It Ends With Us, Justin Baldoni's adaptation of Colleen Hoover's novel that deals with domestic violence. This film, arguably, was less impactful. In fact, many people accused Blake Lively, the film's star and producer, of taking a flippant approach to the film's subject matter and focusing less on domestic violence than she did on “wearing florals to the cinema.” Women who have experienced domestic abuse also felt let down by the film's marketing.
However, the film did partner with No More, a charity dedicated to spreading awareness about domestic abuse. “We are committed to using It Ends With Us as a catalyst to increase dialogue, raise awareness, and inspire actions to help end domestic and sexual violence while promoting healthy relationships,” reads their website. They offer guides to the film for viewers and survivors of abuse, as well as a safe space for people to share their stories.
What is it about art that is so vital for creating change?
Prima Facie is an example of how it can transform statistics into living, breathing things. “We all read about rape cases in the newspaper every day, but when you're locked into a 90-minute performance in which it happens right in front of you, and then she's not believed... I think the emotion that comes out of that is a very potent thing, and a real force for good,” says Parker.
It's a reminder that art should be seen not as a luxury or as entertainment, but as an imperative part of our lives.
“I believe art is fundamental to creating conversations about the ways we live our lives, and about how systems and social norms that shape us can be interrogated and changed," says Miller.
"The great benefit of art is that audiences and receivers of art are impacted by the empathy they create for the characters or images they are experiencing. I remain committed to the idea that when you ‘walk in another’s shoes’ you can really feel, and understand, their experience. Art can do this in a highly successful way. It inspires people to think differently or make a difference.”
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