Fourteen months after the birth of her daughter, Lori Benson was diagnosed with breast cancer. She began video taping everything in her daily life “just in case”. Her film “Dear Talula,” shown at the University on Wednesday, portrayed her survival through footage of her baby, tears and hospital visits. The tainted gene that gave her the disease could not be removed.
But one of her breasts could be.
After her mastectomy, Benson struggled to cope with her new reality and the change from motherhood to survival mode. Three years later, the result is remission and a short film featured Wednesday night at the LUNAFEST film festival in McKenzie Hall.
“It’s hard to believe it’s me. It’s my body,” Benson said. “Life can change in an instant.”
Benson’s film was one of nine films that aim to promote the voices of women and to make men feel comfortable with women’s issues, said University student Nikki Larson, the University’s LUNA representative. The films were selected from more than 200 submissions by woman filmmakers around the globe. LUNA, famous for nutrition bars, is the corporate sponsor of the event. The company holds a partnership with the Breast Cancer Fund. The University is one out of hundreds of campuses across the country to host the event.
About 40 people, mostly women, viewed films that address a wide range of topics about women in the 21st century, including domestic violence, immigration and body image. Benson’s film was the longest in the series and dealt completely with breast cancer, a disease that the National Cancer Institute said will affect one out of seven women.
In one film from Indian award-winning singer Shubha Nudgal sang about surviving domestic violence.
Another follows a pregnant Mexican woman who illegally crosses the border to give birth to her child on U.S. soil.
The event was preceded by a reception and entertainment by Divisi, the University women’s a cappella group. Raffle prizes were handed out at the conclusion of the show.
This is the sixth year that LUNAFEST has been shown annually, and the second time here at the University. Ticket and raffle sales raised $300, Larson said, which will benefit the Breast Cancer Fund as well as a local domestic violence shelter, Womenspace.
“The goal of LUNAFEST is to share compelling issues through film that impact women,” Larson said. “I hope to raise awareness on campus and raise money both locally and nationally.”