(Los Angeles, CA – July 19, 2023) – The Critics Choice Association (CCA) Women’s Committee is pleased to announce that “Barbie” (Warner Bros.) will receive the Seal of Female Empowerment in Entertainment. Called the “SOFEE,” the Seal recognizes outstanding new films and television series that illuminate the female experience and perspective through authentically told female-driven stories.
Director and co-writer Greta Gerwig’s live-action “Barbie” film opens on the female-led Barbie Land. With all of the major occupations being populated by Barbies—president, Supreme Court justices, construction workers, etc.—each day is a perfect one for stereotypical Barbie (Margot Robbie) and her friends. Even the Kens want to be in the resplendent gaze of their Barbie partners. That is, until one day when Barbie starts having less-than-happy thoughts about her own existence. Quickly, her experience in and view of Barbie Land begins to fall apart. On a journey to get her life back, Barbie and her partner Ken (Ryan Gosling) travel to the real world to discover who they really are… but with surprisingly different outcomes.
“‘Barbie’ lures you in with pink nostalgia and hits you hard with a meta script focusing on what it’s like to be a woman in today’s society,” says Lauren Bradshaw, SOFEE Co-Director. “Greta Gerwig has crafted a powerful social commentary that provides depth, while also creating a fun, exciting piece of entertainment. Margot Robbie’s performance packs an emotional punch, which is perfectly balanced with Ryan Gosling’s scene-stealing humor.”
“Barbie” received a perfect score in the numerical formula that is used to determine if new titles, nominated by CCA Women’s Committee members, are eligible for a SOFEE. Qualifying projects will have a prominent female character arc, give female characters at least equal screen time to male characters, have female leaders behind the scenes, and pass elements highlighted in the Bechdel test. To be considered, new film and television releases must possess an artistic and storytelling value and exceptionality, and score at least 7 out of a possible 10 points in the SOFEE rubric, which can be found at CriticsChoice.com.
The Seal of Female Empowerment in Entertainment is issued by the CCA Women’s Committee. Members include Tara McNamara (Chair), Hillary Atkin, Semira Ben-Amor, Christina Birro, Lauren Bradshaw, Jamie Broadnax, TJ Callahan, Catalina Combs, Toni Gonzales, Teri Hart, Susan Kamyab, Destiny Jackson, Lilly Liu, Louisa Moore, Gayl Murphy, Mary Murphy, Sherin Nicole, Patricia Puentes, Amanda Salas, Rachel Smith, Sammi Turano, and Lynn Venhaus, and Lauren Veneziani.
Digital assets and artwork can be found HERE.
About the Critics Choice Association (CCA)
The Critics Choice Association is the largest critics organization in the United States and Canada, representing more than 580 media critics and entertainment journalists. It was established in 2019 with the formal merger of the Broadcast Film Critics Association and the Broadcast Television Journalists Association, recognizing the intersection between film, television, and streaming content. For more information, visit: www.CriticsChoice.com.
CONTACTS:
Tara McNamara
Chair of the CCA Women’s Committee
310-486-6579
