Guest Post: Journeys in Film

We have compiled a small collection of films for you centered around one of our favorite themes: celebrating the importance of both educators and education. These global films bring world religions to life while providing a cross-cultural perspective on learning in different contexts. We recommend these films for your classroom to promote religious literacy, cultural competency, critical thinking, empathy, and knowledge of people and environments around the world. Plus, every day is a good day to recognize the amazing contributions of teachers!

Big Sonia

Sonia Warshawski was a Jewish teenager living in Poland when the German army invaded in the 1930s. Her father and brother were shot, and her sister disappeared. She and her mother became slave laborers and were finally deported to a death camp.

Big Sonia introduces viewers to Sonia’s work as a Holocaust Educator. She speaks to students and prison inmates about her personal experience of unimaginable suffering; she is also a beacon of hope and resilience. 

Journeys in Film offers a free Big Sonia Curriculum Guide with lessons designed for grades 9-12. Many educators combine Big Sonia with Night by Elie Wiesel for a film-book pairing.

Directed by Todd Soliday and Leah Warshawski in 2016, Big Sonia has a running time of 93 minutes and is geared to students in grades 7 to 12. 

He Named Me Malala

Malala Yousafzai’s moving story is one of great courage in the face of Taliban opposition as she campaigned for the right of girls to be educated in Pakistan. Malala’s family is Sunni Muslim, the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world’s Muslims. She began detailing her experiences during the Taliban occupation of the Swat Valley in Pakistan as a blogger for the BBC at 11 years old. A Taliban gunman shot her when she was 15 in an assassination attempt targeting her for her activism. She survived, won the Nobel Peace Prize at age 17, and continues to advocate for gender equity and education for all.

He Named Me Malala documents Malala Yousafzai’s inspiring story and presents students with a dynamic, young, hijab-wearing Muslim woman, who is also an education advocate and a role model from the global South.

Journeys in Film offers a free Curriculum Guide and a free Discussion Guide to help educators use this powerful film in the classroom. Many educators pair this film with Malala’s biography I Am Malala in English Language Arts and Social Studies classes.

Directed by Davis Guggenheim in 2015, He Named Me Malala has a running time of 88 minutes and is geared to learners in grades 7-12.

The Neighborhood Storyteller

Award-winning documentary The Neighborhood Storyteller follows Asmaa Rashed, a resilient Syrian woman in Jordan’s Zaatari refugee camp who, despite being denied an education at a young age, becomes an educator and girl’s education advocate. Asmaa empowers young girls through transformative reading circles, igniting hope and possibility as they navigate the social norms and gender expectations of Syrian Muslim culture together. The film celebrates the importance of reading and sharing stories to find one’s voice.

The Journeys in Film Discussion Guide for the film explores the topics of Girls and Education, as well as Reading, Literacy and Storytelling. The Guide also features questions about the connections between the film and the book Muzoon: A Syrian Refugee Speaks Out, written by Muzoon Almellehan, a young Syrian woman who became a refugee at age 14, and Wendy Pearlman. 

Directed by Alejandra Alcala in 2022, The Neighborhood Storyteller has a running time of 49 minutes, making it easy to screen during classes. The film is appropriate for grades 5 and up. 

Like Stars on Earth

Acclaimed family film Like Stars on Earth (original title: Taare Zameen Par) explores the life and imagination of an artistically gifted boy in India who struggles with dyslexia until his new art teacher helps him to thrive. It’s a heartwarming story about how a teacher can transform the life of a student and what students can achieve when they receive the support they need.

Journeys in Film offers a Like Stars on Earth Curriculum Guide with nine classroom-ready lessons across ten subjects for grades 5-8. Lesson 7 introduces students to the Hindu festival of Diwali, putting it in the context of other world celebrations of light. The lesson also gives students the opportunity to make a diya, a simple clay lamp similar to ones used during Diwali celebrations.

Directed by Aamir Khan and Amole Gupte in 2007, Like Stars on Earth has a running time of 2h 42m. Because this is long for many educational settings, we recommend screening this film for a special schedule day or end of term celebration. Teachers may alternatively screen the film in parts over several days. It’s worth finding creative ways to incorporate the film in teaching because students truly love this joy-filled story. The film is rated PG.

Rebel Hearts

Rebel Hearts follows a group of progressive Catholic nuns at Immaculate Heart College — including Anita Caspary, Helen Kelley, and Corita Kent — as they make sure women receive degrees and transform the education system. Their bold acts of faith, defiance, and activism turned the Church upside-down, helping to reshape society in ways that continue to resonate today.

Journeys in Film offers a Rebel Hearts Curriculum Guide for grades 9-12 which includes two lessons suitable for World Religion classes. It also features a hands-on art lesson inspired by the radical protest art of Corita Kent. (Learn more about this visual arts lesson in our article for Religion Matters: Exploring World Religions Through Art: Hands-on Activities for Students of All Ages.)

Directed by Pedro Kos in 2021, Rebel Hearts has a running time of 99 minutes and is appropriate for high school students and up. 

Conclusion

These engaging films can inspire your students with a love of learning, an appreciation for the privilege of educational access, and a recognition of the transformative power of teachers. At the same time, they bring world religions alive in the classroom both by depicting vibrant, living traditions and by highlighting role models from different cultures and faiths. We hope you can put these films to good use to boost student engagement — because teachers deserve to be celebrated every day.

For additional ideas about how to incorporate films with religion-related content into your classroom, check out:

Ten Documentary Films that Celebrate Women of Faith

Countering Islamophobia Through Film: Recommendations and Resources

 

About Journeys in Film

Journeys in Film is a 501c(3) nonprofit organization, amplifying the storytelling power of film to educate our next generation with a richer understanding of the diverse and complex world in which we live. They design and publishing free, educational resources to accompany carefully chosen feature films and documentaries. Their teaching tools are designed to meet mandated standards in all core subjects.