Director and Writer: Kate Ryan Brewer
Starring: Nina Van Harn, Sara Tasneem, and Fraidy Reiss
Language: English
Runtime: 1 hour 16 minutes
When Dreams of Marriage Becomes a Nightmare
Most girls in America grow-up dreaming of their wedding to their Prince Charming and and for some, it turns into a nightmare with they are forced into marriages.
Director and writer Kate Ryan Brewer's heartbreaking feature film directorial debut 'KNOTS: A Forced Marriage Story' gives voice to three women who live in America, Nina Van Harn, raised in a community cut-off from society, Sara Tasneem, forced into a religious marriage as a teenager and Fraidy Reiss, who was raised in Ultra-Orthodox Jewish faith in Brooklyn, NY, who share their story of enduring forced marriages and the pain and trauma they experienced.
When one thinks of child and forced marriages, it is ususally of countries far away. Not something that would happen in the United States, yet Nina, Sara, and Fraidy shatters that notion and brings attention to this horrible practice here on the soil of the United States.
Fraidy Reiss went on to found Unchained At Last, an organization for women in forced marriages. Reiss, like Nina and Sara, have become fierce advocates and leading voices to end the practice here in the U.S. of the human rights abuse of child and forced marriages.
This film brings to mind a time when having a child without being married brought shame on a woman and family.
Many girls and young ladies were forced to marry the father of their unborn child. Even though society views have changed about unwed mothers, I can know just imagine the number of families who have not changed with the times and would still force their daughter to get married.
A difficult subject, given center stage in KNOTS : A Forced Marriage Story. A subject matter worthy of serious discussions and remedies to end the practice.
Run time: 1 hour 16 minutes
Starring: Nina Van Harn, Sara Tasneem, and Fraidy Reiss
Director and Writer: Kate Brewer
Producers: Kate Ryan Brewer, Paige Livingston
Executive Producer: Tim Ryan
Cinematography: Jasmine Lord
Editor: Darmyn Calderon
Composer: Miriam Mayer