Growing Up Female captures six women, from the ages of 4 to 26, as they experience coming of age in America. Kindergarten girls play with dolls and make mock homesteads, while the boys are outside moving trucks in sand and mimicking work. An 11-year-old prefers the freedom of pants, though her mother longs for her to wear more dresses. In high school, a teenager is counseled on how to be a suitable wife. A young single mother must forgo a college scholarship for a factory job that will allow her to provide for her daughter. A 20-something discusses the influence of men, fashion, and advertising. Touchingly revelatory, this pioneering feminist film acknowledges the countless pressures applied to young women and the many forms those influences can take. ST

Filmmaker Q&A following screening