The Empowerment Project: 5 Women, A Minivan And 7,000 Miles In 30 Days

The incredible journey of five female filmmakers who travel across the United States in search of inspirational women

“What would you do if you weren’t afraid to fail?” That is the question that the filmmakers of The Empowerment Project ask their female audiences, hoping to encourage and inspire them to follow their ambitions.

The project was led by Director/Producer Sarah Moshman, 28, and Producer Dana Cook. Both exposed to and interested in film from a young age, they always knew that they would be working in film in some capacity one day.

“The Empowerment Project” was born with a solid mission in mind. “We became more aware of the lack of positive female role models showcased in the media. We wanted to create content that empowers and inspires the next generation of strong women,” Moshman said. “To get in a minivan and interview women from all walks of life around the U.S. seemed like the best way to do it!”

Cook added, “We wanted to create content that we wanted to watch, that was female focused with a social mission to inspire and educate.”

Their website adds more detail to the film itself. In this project, the filmmakers relay candid insight on how women define their success, what it takes to be a woman in their position, and valuable advice on how to improve the female role in the workplace. In a way, the film is a celebration of the all-female focus in front of and behind the camera.

Both agreed that the experience of traveling across the country to interview these extraordinary women was an inspirational and life changing adventure.

“Fundraising may have been the most difficult part of the process,” Cook said. As they both mentioned, it was not easy to put themselves out there and ask strangers, essentially, for money to fund their project. However, it taught them that it is OK to leave your comfort zone sometimes in order to accomplish your goals.

Using Kickstarter as a platform to fundraise for their campaign, the pair ended up raising more than their original goal for the project, with 400-plus people backing them, in just 60 days. “It was very gratifying and created a wonderful community of people that have supported us throughout our journey,” Moshman said.

One of their goals with the film was to get people talking about the topic. “This film is meant to be seen with a group to start a conversation around empowerment in many forms,” Moshman said. Their unique screening process allows them to interact with their audiences – middle school to college as well as female organizations – firsthand, which they truly enjoy.

Currently, the two are on tour in the U.S.; they will be in Washington D.C. March 16-20 and New York City March 23-27. They encourage anyone who is interested to join their movement during their tour and host a screening of the film.

Moshman and Cook also want their audience to stay tuned for future projects of theirs working to support and inspire women. For now, they are just living their dreams through “The Empowerment Project.”

For information on the film follow them on Twitter at @EmpowermentDocu or stay ahead of the latest on Facebook.

 Check out the trailer:

Steph Elizondo is an intern at Lioness. The 21-year-old Western New England University (WNEU) junior is an English-Literature major. She is the Editor-in-Chief of the literary magazine at WNEU, as well as a staff writer for the school’s newspaper. She enjoys writing stories and poetry creatively, as well as essays and articles professionally. She hopes to become a professional writer and editor.