Cecilia Aldarondo – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

MOVIE OF THE WEEK Sept 11, 2026: DEAR MS.: A REVOLUTION IN PRINT (In Memoriam for Gloria Steinem and Robin Morgan)

September 6, 2026September 6, 2026 Jennifer Merin alice gu, betsy bozcech, Cate Marquis, Cecilia Aldarondo, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print, documentary, gloria steinem, jane fonda, jennifer merin, leslie combemale, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, liz whittemore, loren king, motw, Movie of the Week, Ms, nell minow, Pat Carbine, salima koroma, sandie angulo chen, sherin nicole, women's movement

In a time when what it means to be a feminist seems to be as hotly contested as it ever has been, it’s illuminating to look back at the 1970s, when the “women’s lib” movement was hitting the mainstream. By telling the story of the magazine that strove to support and further that movement, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print reminds us of how much has changed since then…and how far we have to go. (AWFJ.org featured Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print as our MOTW on July 2, 2025, we do so again to honor Ms. Magazine co-founders Gloria Steinem and Robin Morgan, recently deceased.)

Movie of the Week

MOVIE OF THE WEEK July 4, 2025: DEAR MS: A REVOLUTION IN PRINT

June 29, 2025July 3, 2025 Jennifer Merin alice gu, Cecilia Aldarondo, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print, documentary, gloria steinem, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, motw, Movie of the Week, Ms, Pat Carbine, salima koroma, women's movement

In a time when what it means to be a feminist seems to be as hotly contested as it ever has been, it’s illuminating to look back at the 1970s, when the “women’s lib” movement was really hitting the mainstream. By telling the story of the magazine that strove to support and further that movement, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print reminds us of just how much really has changed since then…as well as how far we still have to go.

Festivals Reviews

DEAR MS. (Tribeca 2025) – Review by Leslie Combemale

June 16, 2025June 19, 2025 Leslie Combemale alice gu, alice walker, Angela Davis, Cecilia Aldarondo, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print, eroticism vs porn, Gloria Steinem Letty Cottin Pogrebin, Jane O’Reily, Joanna Edgar, Mary Peacock, Mary Thomas, ms. magazine, Nina Kinkelstein, Patricia Carbine, salima koroma, Susan Faludi, testosterone poisoning

Broken into three parts, and directed by three female filmmakers, Dear Ms.: A Revolution in Print aims to capture how vital the feminist magazine was in reframing and contextualizing culture for American women. I’m happy to say it not only feels like a celebration of sisterhood, and of an important feminist touchstone, it also reveals stories and elements of the magazine that were new to me. Dear Ms. shows just how fearless and forward-thinking issue after issue was, but also how willing those in charge always were to learn, change, and course correct. The name Dear Ms. is a reference to the magazine’s letters section, where many women wrote in from the very beginning to respond to its articles. After the first issue, there were hundreds of letters in which women said they’d finally felt seen and heard. Ms. was a place where their thoughts were given voice. Now that’s power.

Interviews

Cecilia Aldarondo on docu-fiction and YOU WERE MY FIRST BOYFRIEND – Nadine Whitney interviews

November 13, 2023November 13, 2023 Nadine Whitney autobiographical documentary, Cecilia Aldarondo, hbo, Sarah Enid Hagey, Winter Park Florida, You Were My First Boyfriend

In You Were My First Boyfriend, filmmaker Cecilia Aldarondo returns to her adolescence in Winter Park, Florida to recreate sections of the experiences that she felt defined her as an adult. The opening of the painfully intimate docu-fiction is a hazy recreation of a school dance with Cecilia as an adult dressed as her teen self interacting with young actors playing her contemporaries in the mid-nineties. It feels like a horror film come to life, because for so many going back to that vulnerable period is something we only do in nightmares, especially if for some reason we were outsiders at school. Cecilia, a Puerto Rican woman was not the ideal thin white girl. She wanted a boyfriend, popularity, a feeling of belonging, but could never quite achieve it. Cecelia talks about immersive docu-fiction and other works that inspired You Were My First Boyfriend.

Reviews

YOU WERE MY FIRST BOYFRIEND – Review by Nadine Whitney

November 2, 2023November 5, 2023 Nadine Whitney autobiographical documentary, Cecilia Aldarondo, hbo, Sarah Enid Hagey, Winter Park Florida, You Were My First Boyfriend

You Were My First Boyfriend might appear to be Cecilia Aldarondo’s personal catharsis, but it is much more. The experiences she describes exist beyond her milieu and are timeless. Few teens are cheerleaders and athletes in the in-crowd. You Were My First Boyfriend will resonate with people of all ages, anyone who felt that they were broken in adolescence and cannot parse why. You Were My First Boyfriend is a painful and beautiful journey where Cecilia Aldarondo lays her soul bare for all to see. We want to hold the hand of the young woman she was and the wonderfully brave woman she is.

Reviews

YOU WERE MY FIRST BOYFRIEND (SXSW2023) – Review by Diane Carson

March 20, 2023March 25, 2023 Diane Carson body image issues, Cecilia Aldarondo, documentaries, HBO documentary, Sarah Enid Hagey, sxsw2023, You Were My First Boyfriend

Introducing the world premiere of You Were My First Boyfriend at this year’s SXSW Film Festival, co-director/co-writer Cecilia Aldarondo said with a smile that she decided to attend her high school reunion so we would not have to. Going all in, co-director /co-writer Sarah Enid Hagey’s and Aldarondo’s hybrid documentary involves remembering and restaging events from Cecilia’s 1990s adolescence with a cast of teenage actors interacting with her now.