After six years of dedicated work to center unheard voices, a first-time Dominican filmmaker has earned international acclaim for her intimate portrait of Dominican womanhood: her documentary *Women of Dominica* has been named Best International Documentary at Miami’s 11th annual Urban Film Festival. The award win was officially announced in a September 16, 2025 press statement from Gaia’s Essence, the production company behind the project.
The 64-minute feature, which also earned a nomination for Best Feature Documentary at the festival, weaves together first-person interviews, verité observational footage, and sweeping cinematic shots of Dominica’s landscape to tell the interconnected stories of 10 Dominican women spanning multiple generations. Far more than a collection of personal narratives, the film probes deep into themes of cross-generational mentorship, the enduring power of matriarchal knowledge, and the unshakable cultural pride that binds these women together. It also casts a focused lens on the underrecognized role Caribbean women play in safeguarding collective cultural identity and steering the long-term development of their local communities.
For director Farrah La Ronde-Hutchison, an accomplished environmental scientist who pursued this film project as her first directorial work, the award marks a full-circle moment for a years-long labor of love. “Winning Best International Documentary at Urban Film Festival validates the six year journey of bringing these women’s stories to life,” she shared in comments following the award announcement. “This award isn’t just for the film, it’s for Dominica and the ten extraordinary Dominican women whose voices, resilience, and cultural legacy deserve to be celebrated and preserved. To have our work honored alongside such talented filmmakers at UFF has been an emotional moment and one I will never forget.”
The documentary made its Miami festival premiere on September 6, 2025, during the event’s official programming slate. For La Ronde-Hutchison, the festival experience extended far beyond the award recognition, offering invaluable opportunities to connect with fellow independent creators and engage directly with audience reactions to her work.
“The Urban Film Festival experience was extraordinary,” La Ronde-Hutchison added. “The festival team’s responsiveness, the connections with fellow filmmakers, and the genuine sense of community created an environment where our film could be truly celebrated. Getting to Miami, meeting incredible creators, and witnessing the audience response was life-changing.”
The Miami honor is just the latest stop for the documentary, which is already booked for additional high-profile festival screenings across North America and the Caribbean. Upcoming showings include a presentation at Toronto’s ScreenShare/CaribbeanTales International Film Festival, and a screening at the Caribbean Film Festival in Trinidad and Tobago. Per the official press release, organizers are currently lining up additional international festival appearances to expand the film’s reach, as it continues its global festival tour to share the stories of Dominica and its women with audiences across the world.