‘When I think about the women in my life, particularly the mothers, I cannot help but think of how strong they always appear, how resilient they always seem,’ director Kathryn Roberts said.
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Film directed by Back Mountain native
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Back Mountain native Kathryn Roberts, director of “Becoming, Being Mom,” is returning home to have the US premiere of her film at Misericordia University on Sunday, November 12 at 2:30 p.m.
The 35-minute film is about four women who share their experience with pregnancy, birth and raising children with the joys and challenges that come along the way. The women contemplate their identities in and outside of motherhood and what it means for them.
“When I think about the women in my life, particularly the mothers, I cannot help but think of how strong they always appear, how resilient they always seem. Forever multitasking and mastering the incredible juggle between work and home life and always rolling with the punches that life tends to throw. And when I recall these memories of my own mother, my grandmother, and aunts, I have always been marveled by how I have never seen them flinch,” said Roberts.
What makes this film so special to Misericordia University is not only hosting her US premiere but also that Roberts included a mom from Misericordia’s Ruth Matthews Bourger Women with Children program in the film.
The Ruth Matthews Bourger Women with Children Program at Misericordia University is dedicated to “Creating a Legacy of Academic Excellence, Two Generations at a Time.” It is the only university-based, single mother residential program in the state of Pennsylvania and among only eight of its kind in the United States. Our two-generation model program helps single mothers and their children, who are living at or near the poverty level, achieve their college educations and continue on into professional careers. By doing this, we break the cycle of intergenerational poverty, two generations at a time.
“It is my hope that through this documentary I will be able to highlight just some of the countless experiences and sacrifices that women face as mothers, in an attempt to show how motherhood can look so many different ways for so many different women,” Roberts said. “By shining a light on these four unique perspectives of motherhood and unveiling the common threads between each of their stories, I hope that ‘Becoming, Being Mom’ will resonate with all mothers and women contemplating motherhood, regardless of their age, race, location, etc.”
“It is my belief that when it comes to identity and how women learn to define themselves both in and outside of motherhood, the journey is universal.”
The film has also become a 2023 Official Selection at the North East International Film Festival, and the Official Selection Red Rose Film Festival 2023. Tickets to the premiere must be made in advance via Eventbrite.