A documentary about birth in times of excessive medical intervention. In a country where Caesarean section births account for four times the recommended WHO rate, one mother sets out to reclaim her own body and regain trust in the maternity care system.
Has medicalisation of childbirth gone too far?
Are you ready to surrender to the power of Birth?
The director
Danae Stylianou was born in Cyprus, in 1984.
She holds a BA (Hons) Film Production from the University of Westminster, in London. Graduated 2004. She produces and directs independent documentaries and factual audiovisual content. She has also worked as casting director in cinema and TV, casting for films, shows, and TV ads for 15 years.
In 2011 she directed and produced her first documentary feature film, Sharing an island, about the inter-communal relations of Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot youth. Sharing an island was screened widely in Cyprus and abroad, winning two awards for its contribution to peace in Cyprus and the world. In her 2nd documentary feature, A Haircut Story, seven stories emerge from the black hole of the banks, one year after Cyprus became the first Eurozone member state to be subjected to a bail-in on deposits.
Birth Days is a film about women’s rights to informed choices at childbirth.
In 2024, she directed - produced SKAMMATA for the Cyprus Department of Antiquities. Her films screened at international festivals (inc.Thessaloniki Int'l Documentary Festival, Mediterranean FF Rome, Drama IFF, Riga IFF, Interfilm Berlin, Montreal IFF).
Since 2011, she has been on the organising team of the major, state-funded film festivals of Cyprus -Cyprus Film Days IF (2012-) the Int'l Short Film Festival of Cyprus (2012 – 2021) and Lemesos Int'l Documentary Festival (2012 - ). In 2020, she was appointed head of Dot.on.the.Map Industry Days – the industry platform of Cyprus Film Days IF.
FILMOGRAPHY:
2024 SKAMMATA, Documentary Feature (Department of Antiquities)
2024 PENNA, Documentary Series (Press & Information Office)
2023-4 Art in the City, Documentary Series (Press & Information Office)
2019 - 2020 Baby Buddy Forward, Web Documentaries
2019 OLGA’S GARDEN, short documentary
2018, BIRTH DAYS, feature documentary
2014, A HAIRCUT STORY, feature documentary
2011, SHARING AN ISLAND, feature documentary
2006, DOLLHOUSE, short film
2004, ANKARA STREET, short documentary
2004, SNOW WHITE AND THE 7 CHARMS, short film
National Premiere CYPRUS
A full house for our national premiere on August 5th, 2018, which took place at the 13th Lemesos International Documentary Festival.
Individualized, supportive care key to positive childbirth experience - WHO
WHO has issued new recommendations to establish global care standards for healthy pregnant women and reduce unnecessary medical interventions.