By Julia De Laurentiis Johnson

Sisters are doing it for themselves this week and today marks the opening of The 5th Annual Female Eye Film Festival. Running until June 18th, the fest boasts 68 short and feature films by female-only directors from around the world. Held at The National Film Board Cinema( 150 John St.), each showing offers a few shorts, a feature and Q & A with the directors.
Special to this fest is the 1st Young Filmmaker Development Workshop, a year-long mentorship program that coupled seasoned directors with Woodbridge high school students to create seven experimental films.
The film festival will also have script readings, panel discussions, a special Father’s Day program and an awards ceremony on Saturday night. And with all this culture and idea sharing, they’ve still left time to party with receptions at The WARC Gallery and Autogrill restaurant.
Tonight Ann Marie Fleming, this year’s Honorary Director (last year’s was Deepa Mehta of Water fame), will have her screening of The French Guy, a story of a woman who undergoes brain surgery, meets a young man and seems to have one accident after another. Also playing tonight is Eve of Understanding by Alyson Shelton, a story of how a daughter carrying out her mother’s dying wish leads her to unexpected places and people and forces a reconciliation of her own. For the complete festival program, click here.
So come and sit in the dark all weekend and indulge your feminine eye. But please turn off your cellphones and check your patriarchal thought-system at the door.