9to5: The Story of a Movement

Premiered February 1, 2021

Directed by

Julia Reichert and Steven Bognar

9to5: The Story of a Movement captures the real-life fight that inspired a hit and changed the American workplace.

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About the Documentary

They couldn’t kill their bosses, so they did the next best thing — they organized.

When Dolly Parton sang “9 to 5,” she was doing more than just shining a light on the fate of American working women. Parton was singing the true story of a movement that started with 9to5, a group of Boston secretaries in the early 1970s. Their goals were simple—better pay, more advancement opportunities and an end to sexual harassment—but their unconventional approach attracted the press and shamed their bosses into change. Featuring interviews with 9to5’s founders, as well as actor and activist Jane Fonda, 9to5: The Story of a Movement is the previously untold story of the fight that inspired a hit and changed the American workplace.

The Filmmakers

Ohio-based Julia Reichert is a four-time Academy Award nominee and Oscar winner for her documentary work. Julia’s student film at Antioch College, Growing Up Female was the first feature documentary of the modern Women’s Movement. It was selected for the National Film Registry. Her film A Lion in the House (made with Steven Bognar) premiered at Sundance, screened nationally on PBS, won the Primetime Emmy for Exceptional Merit in Nonfiction Filmmaking. Reichert and Bognar won the 2020 Academy Award for Best Documentary for American Factory.

Steven Bognar is an Oscar and Emmy award winning documentary filmmaker based in Ohio. With his partner Julia Reichert, he has directed and produced American Factory, The Last Truck, and A Lion in the House,. Their films have screened at top film festivals, and on HBO, PBS and Netflix. Bognar’s first feature documentary, ,Personal Belongings, which he produced, directed & edited, premiered at the 1996 Sundance Film Festival and broadcast on POV.

Full Credits

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Awards

Alexandria Film Festival

Best of Fest Award
St. Louis International Film Festival

St. Louis Film Critics' Joe Williams' Award for Best Documentary
Key West Film Festival

Best Women’s Film