Product Details

• Actors: Carrie Brownstein, Beth Ditto
• Directors: Shane King;Arne Johnson
• Format: Color, DVD, NTSC, Widescreen
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rating: PG (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Studio: Liberation Ent
• DVD Release Date: January 27, 2009
• Run Time: 89 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B001CCIS36
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #40,559 in Movies & TV (See Bestsellers in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The Rock 'n' Roll Camp for Girls is a place where 8-18 year olds from all over the country come to jam --forming bands, writing songs and building community. What they learn through music extends far beyond song, however. What they discover is their own true voice, and a confidence in themselves that is the true meaning of Girls Rock! This magnificent experiment in empowerment leaves no one unchanged.

This is their journey.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Girls Rock! Description, January 7, 2009

By	Arne Johnson "Filmmaker" (San Francisco) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Ok, full disclosure here, I'm one of the directors of the film. So, this isn't really a review, but it seemed there wasn't a lot of information about the movie above, so I thought I'd include some here (from the Hot Docs Film Festival Catalog):

At Rock 'n' Roll Camp, girls ranging in age from eight to 18 are taught that it's OK to sweat like a pig, scream like a banshee, wail on their instruments with complete and utter abandon, and that "it is 100% okay to be exactly who you are." The girls have a week to select a band, an instrument they may have never played before, and write a song. In between, they are taught by indie rock chicks such as Carrie Brownstein from Sleater-Kinney various lessons of empowerment from self-defense to anger management. At the end of the week, all the bands perform a concert for over 700 people. The film follows several campers: Laura, a Korean adoptee obsessed by death metal; Misty, who is emerging from a life of meth addiction, homelessness and gang activity; and Amelia, an eight-year-old who writes experimental rock songs about her dog Pipi. What happens to the girls as they are given a temporary reprieve from being sexualized, analyzed and pressured to conform is truly moving and revolutionary.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Empowering Girls Through Music, March 19, 2009

By	Valerie J. Saturen (Tacoma, WA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Self-esteem doesn't come easy to many adolescent girls in a society bombarded with mixed messages, sexual imagery, eating disorders and narrow standards of beauty, and a bias against female assertiveness. Girls Rock! is a moving documentary about the efforts of a group of women rockers fighting the self-esteem gap through the Rock & Roll Camp for Girls in Portland, OR. Established by some of the women instrumental to the riot grrrl movement--a feminist branch of punk--of the 1990s, such as Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney, the camp teaches girls aged 8-18 music and self-defense. In just one week, the girls form bands, learn an instrument (often picking it up for the first time), and write a song. At the end, each band performs before an audience of hundreds, providing an unforgettable experience. Backed with statistics illustrating the trials girls face as they grow up--including sexual assault, anorexia, and biases in education--the film follows four girls as they struggle to find their voices and learn to rock.

Laura, 15, is an adopted Korean with an outgoing personality, articulate views, and an obsession with death metal. Although she seems self-assured, making friends easily, she later reveals that she struggles with her self-image. Misty, a 17-year-old attending the camp through a program with the group home where she lives, copes with a broken family life and a troubled past of gang activity and drugs. Never having seen a bass guitar in her life, she picks up the instrument and becomes a valuable part of her hip hop band. The 8-year-old Amelia writes experimental songs about her dog Pipi. She's a girl on her own wavelength and has to work toward blending her original creative visions with her bandmates. Palace, who's 7, loves to perform but has trouble getting along with others. Her mother, who owns a clothing store, worries that her young daughter is already starting to absorb society's obsession with looks.

Part of the camp's magic is not only its impact on the girls' confidence, but also its role in creating an environment where the girls work together and support each other. As one of the staff members says in an emotional interview, young women are often their own worst enemies, taking out their sense of powerlessness on each other through bullying and teasing. The camp teaches them to empower themselves and each other, and the result is inspiring.