Skateistan Documentary Nominated for Oscar
January 31, 2020
Leading sport for development organization, Skateistan have been nominated for an Oscar and BAFTA for their documentary, Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone (If You’re a Girl). Filmed over the course of a year, the short film follows the progress of a group of girls at Skateistan in Kabul as they progress both in the classroom and the skatepark, navigating not only the challenges of their education but the increasingly unstable country they live in.
Skateistan is a past Beyond Sport Global Award winner who focus on supporting underprivileged girls in areas of conflict. They combine skateboarding lessons with traditional educational classes in order to give young girls a better opportunity to enroll at regular school.
The short documentary focuses on how Skateistan acts as a safe space from the outside world for its students, where the girls are free to express themselves, learn without fear and can allow their personalities to shine.
Skateistan Founder, Oliver Percovich said, “We are all so happy to see Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone recognized by the Academy and BAFTA. We see so many negative stories about Afghanistan and this is a story of real hope which can help to challenge perceptions. Here at Skateistan, we’re firm believers that when girls and women are empowered, they can achieve great things. That’s what is demonstrated so well in this film – the story of a group of girls who are defying expectations in Afghanistan, being told by an all-female film crew and getting the recognition it deserves.”
In addition to winning the Best Documentary Short prize at Tribeca, Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone also won Best Short Doc at the Flyway Film Festival in Wisconsin and the Social Justice Film Festival in Seattle, and was named to the International Documentary Association’s shortlist for their 2019 awards. BAFTA winners will be announced on 2 February and Academy Award winners on 9 February.
Skateistan received the Sport for Education Award at the 2013 Beyond Sport Global Awards. Learn more about how we celebrate, support, raise awareness and provide funding for ways sport is being used to help make the Global Goals a reality through our annual Beyond Sport Global Awards.