On October 11, 1991, a poised young law professor sent shock waves through the nation as she sat before the Senate Judiciary Committee intrepidly testifying to the lewd behavior of a Supreme Court nominee. Twenty years later, Academy Award winner Freida Mock brings us Anita, which crystallizes the sexist power dynamics in the room that day and unravels the impact of that lightning-rod moment on Anita Hill’s life and the broader discussion of gender inequality in America. Contemporary interviews with Hill and her allies, and unsettling archival footage, reveal the way her attempt to report confidentially on Clarence Thomas’s conduct quickly became a perverse and vicious public attack on her character and credibility. Hill’s hearing became a charade of justice. Yet her audacity to speak out detonated a national debate about sexual harassment that revolutionized gender politics.

2013 Sundance Film Festival
2013 Human Rights Watch Film Festival, Opening Night
2013 AFI Docs Film Festival

“Thoughtful and quietly powerful” – Duane Byrge, Hollywood Reporter

“The film is not just about the Thomas hearings; it’s an issue film about sexual harassment, particularly in the workplace, and the oft-ignored mechanics of gender and power. Anita may be a tribute doc, but it’s one with real heft.” – John Anderson, Variety

“Anita makes for rapt viewing… powerful, and stirring, and more than a little shocking, too” – Lisa Schwarzbaum, Entertainment Weekly