About the Film

Like River, A Girl is a character driven feature documentary that explores the life of Aduei Riak, one of the Lost Girls of Sudan who came to America through a resettlement program in 2000. The film chronicles Aduei's ongoing struggle to help rebuild her war-ravaged country by providing education for girls in her home village of Malek in Southern Sudan. Because of culture and tradition, girls do not go to school especially in rural villages in Southern Sudan. This has impacted Sudan negatively leaving the country with huge gender literacy disparities. Aduei believes that change in Sudan will begin with the education of girls and young women and she hopes that her school will help bridge the gender literacy gap.

The film also explores the history of The Lost Girls through Aduei's personal testimony. The story of the Lost Boys of Sudan has gained media attention resulting in many published bestsellers and award winning films. The Lost Girls of Sudan on the other hand remain invisible to the mainstream media. Like the boys, The Lost Girls Of Sudan walked for miles to refugee camps in Ethiopia. They faced starvation, disease, slavery, wild animals, violence and death. The girls even endured domestic servitude and in some cases, rape. By focusing solely on Aduei, the film will take a personal and intimate approach to the history of the Lost Girls rather than a general historical one. Like River, A Girl will be one of the first films to explore the heroic story of these young women.