Some Recent Impacts

A word cloud outlining responses to the question "What's one action you'll take after watching the smallest steps? The biggest words include "Listen, volunteer, educate, and speak."
Responses to our question "What is something you plan to do (big/small) to support ending violence against women?" at a Q&A event.

How is it already June??? It’s amazing how quickly the time flies when screenings, events, and impacts are happening!

We’re so thankful that the smallest steps is continuing to inspire audiences to end violence against women. A few of our most recent successes and impacts are below!

If you haven’t yet seen our film, or you want to bring it to your community, reach out to our new distributor — The Canadian Filmmaker’s Distribution Centre — at bookings@cfmdc.org! You can also email us directly at VAWDoc (at) gmail.com.

"Fantastic job you did. I found it very motivating!"

-Hamilton Business Owner

Latest Screenings

Since the beginning of 2023, we’ve screened the film in a few different capacities:

  • We were accepted and screened at the Women’s Voices Now film festival in March 2023
  • Our film was used as a teaching aid in a university law class focused on social justice activism.
  • The film screened as part of a Feminisms conference in Thunder Bay. 
  • We held a very successful Hamilton Premiere in May
  • We screened the film virtually through the Women’s Network at Shared Services Canada and participated in a post-screening Q&A.

We continue to organize community and educational screenings, with the newest one coming up in Woodstock, ON on June 19 (get tickets!).

Want to bring the smallest steps to your community? Let us know!

Volunteer & YWCA Worker, Kiri De New, welcomes folks to the Hamilton screening while sitting beside a poster of the film.
Screening volunteer & YWCA Worker, Kiri De New, welcomes folks to the Hamilton screening.
A table display featuring a business cards tree and a "Teardrop Pin" display created by a survivor - the teardrop pin is meant to be worn to raise awareness of domestic violence.
Did you know, the Teardrop Pin was created and shared with us by a GTA-based survivor. She created this pin to raise awareness of domestic violence.
A woman writes on a banner that includes printed-on and hand-written activism ideas and actions.
Folks adding ideas to our activism actions banner at the Hamilton Screening!

"I really enjoyed the smallest steps film for a multitude of reasons. It is inspirational and shows young people that sometimes perseverance pays off...It chronicles the struggles that the advocates to end violence against women have encountered and overcome. We can all be “change-makers” in some way..."

-Anonymous
An older woman with grey hair, light skin, and a mask waves at the camera. Beside her, a middle-aged woman with light brown skin and black curly hair grins. On the far left, a younger woman with light skin and blonde hair smiles beside the others.
Met Eileen Morrow and Pauline Kajiura in person at the Hamilton Screening!! (Apologies for the blur--I'm not the greatest selfie-taker!)

Impact Activities

The most rewarding part about screening the smallest steps is learning about the impacts we’ve made through the film. Below are just a few we’ve heard about in 2023!

  • The film was shared with a network of over 500 Government of Canada employees and the post-screening Q&A was attended by over 100 people.
    • At the end of the Q&A, participants shared one action they would take towards ending violence against women. Their responses are shared anonymously in the above word cloud. 
  • Our Hamilton Premiere included a community networking event. We had a great turnout for the film and were able to raise $350 for the Hamilton Sisters in Spirit Committee. The screening also led to the following impacts and connections:
    • A survivor new to Hamilton learned about supports available to them in the community.
    • A volunteer from a new Hamilton-based service connected with organizations  for service referral
    • Shelter staff connected with Hamilton-based services to support their clients
    • A student was inspired to invite a local organization to speak at their school
    • 93.3 CFMU was inspired to record and air an intergenerational conversation about anti-violence activism featuring Medora Uppal, CEO for YWCA Hamilton, and Samm Florin, a Masters of Social Work Student at McMaster University. This interview was featured as part of their June 9, 2023 program.
  • Attendees braved a snowstorm in Thunder Bay to attend the screening and really enjoyed learning more about the feminist anti-violence movement in the region.

We’re very excited to see what new impacts we can have with our film going forward!

"'the smallest steps' film and discussion with Nicole Bedford and Leighann Burns had such a positive impact on our Government of Canada Women in STEM community. The film's exploration of the challenges faced by women, particularly those from equity-deserving communities, in terms of safety and protection was eye-opening and informative. We learned how we can all contribute to facilitating change and being supporters of anti-violence activism to create a safer and more inclusive society. The insights shared by Nicole Bedford and Leighann Burns provided valuable perspectives on this subject of Violence Against Women and its relative challenges for victims, the legal system and communities. We had a wonderful discussion which generated conversation, questions, and a positive response from our members. As allies and activists, it's important to continue the dialogue, educate ourselves, and support initiatives like this that promote taking action, justice and equality for all. Thank you Nicole Bedford and Leighann Burns, and for promoting this important message throughout Canada and abroad."

-Rochelle Smith, Shared Services Canada Women's Network