A BETTER MAN follows a series of intimate conversations between a woman and her former boyfriend when she confronts him about their history of domestic abuse.

Canada | 2017 | 79 minutes | Color | DVD | Order No. 171211

SYNOPSIS

From Executive Producer Sarah Polley, A BETTER MAN follows a series of intimate conversations between a woman and her former boyfriend when she confronts him about their history of domestic abuse. More than 20 years have passed when filmmaker Attiya Khan asks her ex-boyfriend, Steve, to meet. Steve abused Attiya every day during the two years they lived together. She finally fled out of fear for her life, and has carried the emotional scars ever since. Now, Attiya wants to talk to Steve—on camera—searching to answer a question that is both simple and incredibly complicated: Will Steve take responsibility? A BETTER MAN follows this bold and radical exploration of restorative justice. Through emotionally raw conversations, Attiya and Steve begin a new recovery process—and illustrate a new paradigm for domestic violence prevention. The film offers a fresh and nuanced look at the healing and revelation that can happen for everyone involved when men take responsibility for their abusive behavior.

PRESS

"A call to action for abusive men to stand up and take responsibility for their anger and their actions."

The Guardian

"A revolutionary documentary. The next step in helping others find new ways to heal."

Vulture

"Startling. Intense. The documentary's cleverness is that it resists the roundness of resolution or catharsis, while also acknowledging that Khan and Steve will always remain some kind of asymmetrical unit."

The New Yorker

SCREENING HIGHLIGHTS AND AWARDS

  • Cleveland International Film Festival
  • Hot Docs Canadian International Documentary Festival
  • San Diego Asian Film Festival
  • Big Sky Documentary Film Festival
  • Doc NYC
  • DCTV
  • Modern Woman Film Festival
  • Festival EDOC

ABOUT FILMMAKER(S)

Attiya Khan

Attiya Khan (Writer, Co-Director) is a Toronto-based feminist, intimate partner violence survivor, and long-time advocate and counselor for abused women and children. Attiya conceived the idea for A Better Man in 2012, drawing on her personal and professional experience with intimate partner violence. Attiya has worked in women’s shelters in Canada and the United States, including running the Child and Youth Services Program at Transition House in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She also worked at YWCA Toronto, supporting the communications and advocacy team, managing a training program on crisis intervention, and administering the December 6th Fund, which offers interest-free loans to women fleeing domestic violence. As a writer, activist, and speaker, she has presented at numerous events and conferences related to domestic violence. Together with her family, she recently co-founded a YWCA Toronto scholarship program for domestic-violence survivors. (7/17)

Lawrence Jackman

LAWRENCE JACKMAN (Co-Writer, Co-Director, Editor) is a Toronto-based filmmaker. Over the past 15 years, he has worked on many award-winning films, focusing primarily on independent documentaries and dramas. He often works as an editorial consultant and has a long-standing association with the NFB in this role. Jackman has experience working at critical stages to creatively and structurally bring films to completion. Both as an editor and a director, he is interested in creative storytelling and pushing genre boundaries. In 2011, he directed How Does It Feel, a documentary musical about the importance of creative fulfillment that tells the story of a singer with cerebral palsy. (7/17)

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