The Bookwomen

Real images of the WPA Packhorse Library Project, 1930s. (Recoloured).

About The Bookwomen

The Bookwomen is a short film inspired by the real Packhorse Library Project of 1930s Kentucky, where women travelled on horseback to deliver books to remote communities during the Great Depression. It’s a story about access to knowledge, quiet resistance and the ways women carve out freedom in impossible circumstances.

I have a background in documentary filmmaking, photography and social-led storytelling, but this will be my first scripted short film. My work focuses on authenticity, emotional honesty and underrepresented voices. I’m passionate about making work that feels lived-in and respectful of its subjects, whether in documentary or fiction. I’ll be working with a small, experienced creative team who share this approach - prioritising collaboration, care and craft. The aim is to create a safe, thoughtful working environment that reflects the values of the story itself. 

Visually, the film is grounded in the aesthetic and narrative language of the classic Western but reimagined through a distinctly female lens. While there are horses, guns, an antagonist, and themes of struggle to adapt to changing times, The Bookwomen is a neo-western which reimagines many of the western tropes. The Western often oppresses women, but here the women have agency over their futures. It’s no longer men rescuing women, but women saving each other and, ultimately, themselves. The climactic showdown deliberately happens off screen, and the film rejects romanticised ideas of the west. 

The film 

Set in rural Kentucky during the Great Depression, The Bookwomen follows May, a Pack Horse Librarian who rides across the Appalachian wilderness delivering books to isolated communities. When May meets eleven-year-old Ethel, whose deeply religious mother Eleanor refuses to allow books into their home, she recognises a childhood shaped by the same fear and deprivation she once escaped. Determined to bring education, hope and imagination into Ethel's life, May secretly leaves books for her and sneaks into their home while Eleanor is away.

But when Eleanor discovers them, she violently drives May away, banning her from ever returning. Weeks later, after Ethel disappears into the mountains, May and Eleanor are forced to look beyond their assumptions of one another as they search for the young girl. In the aftermath of Ethel's disappearance, The Bookwomen becomes a tender story of hope, and the transformative power of education. Inspired by the true story of Kentucky's Pack Horse Librarians, the film celebrates books not simply as objects of knowledge, but as bridges between people.

The Team

Writer/Director - Meg Wriggles

Meg Wriggles is a writer/director based in Edinburgh, with a background in authentic, story-led filmmaking. She brings a blend of raw, honest storytelling and cinematic visuals to every project - drawing on her documentary roots to craft emotionally resonant, socially driven work. Meg is the co-founder of Skateboobs, Edinburgh’s female and queer skate collective, and is passionate about creating space for women and queer voices in adventure and action sports. Her directing credits include documentaries and commercials for Nike SB, Red Bull, ROXY, Three Mobile/ Chelsea WFC, Asics, and most recently, Stella Artois.

Meg’s work is grounded in truth and a strong belief in representation, ecological awareness, and the power of stories to drive meaningful change. Meg grew up with horses and is passionate to make this story to honour these powerful women, and to highlight the power of education for hope and freedom.

Producer - Léa Luiz de Oliveira

Léa is an award-winning French-Brazilian producer and filmmaker currently based between Scotland and Switzerland. Since 2012, she has created and delivered ambitious creative projects in Europe, Brazil, Turkey, UK & Korea. Most recently, she produced the BAFTA-nominated Friends on the Outside by Annabel Moodie and Mother's Influence by Meg Wriggles. She is currently producing a new slate of documentaries, as well as her first drama, Bubbles by Jagoda Tłok, as one of the producers selected for the 2025 cohort of the NFTS Sean Connery Talent Lab and Eurodoc 2026.

Cinematographer - Nelisa Alcalde 

Nelisa Alcalde is a Spanish cinematographer based in the UK whose work is rooted in strong collaboration with directors and production designers. She places particular emphasis on pre-production, often describing it as essential to her process, and is drawn to storytelling through mise-en-scène and carefully composed visual worlds. She trained at FAMU Prague, where she honed her craft shooting on 16mm and 35mm film. Her graduation film, Honey Bunny Duracell, received the Best Student Cinematography Award from the Czech Association of Cinematographers (AČK).

Alcalde has previously collaborated with Meg on Mother’s Influence (2025) and with Léa on Bubbles (2026), directed by BAFTA-nominated filmmaker Jagoda Tłok as part of the NFTS and BBC Films Sean Connery Talent Lab.

Colourist - Ines Sanchez

Inès Sanchez is a Paris-based colourist known for her refined visual sensibility and meticulous attention to detail. With over a decade of experience at Le Labo Paris, her credits include grading dailies for The Count of Monte-Cristo and work on The Last Duel directed by Ridley Scott. Since becoming a freelance colourist, she has continued to work on internationally recognised projects, including Across the Water, which screened at the Cannes Film Festival, and ALAZAR, which premiered at Cannes Film Festival Critics’ Week before screening at the Toronto International Film Festival, Melbourne International Film Festival, and the Clermont-Ferrand International Short Film Festival.

She has collaborated with Léa and Meg on several projects, including Mother’s Influence (2025) which premiered at the Edinburgh International Film Festival and Slamdance Film Festival.

Historical Context

Set during the Great Depression, The Bookwomen reflects a harsh reality where unemployment in rural Appalachia soared to nearly 40%, illiteracy rates reached around 31%, and as many as 90% of children faced hunger and malnutrition. In this desperate landscape, the Pack Horse Library Project was a lifeline - a New Deal initiative where “book women” traveled hundreds of miles on horseback and foot, delivering books and vital news to isolated mountain families. Their routes spanned between 100 to 120 miles, repeated twice monthly, meaning they covered on average 4,905 miles each month. Carrying up to 100 books per trip, these women were more than librarians - they were messengers of hope, passing along not only stories but news of births, deaths, and community events. Children eagerly flocked from schools and homes, grateful for the rare opportunity to read and imagine beyond their harsh surroundings. This story pays homage to their courage and the power of literacy in the face of poverty and isolation. 

Political Relevance & Urgency 

This is a story about the power of art and community in the face of abuse and adversity. It speaks to the urgency of education and creative tools for women and marginalised groups, and to the need to keep these conversations at the forefront. We still urgently need films led by underrepresented voices, in the present and rooted in the past, to remind audiences that powerful role models from historically excluded groups have always existed and should be honoured. With books being censored and minoritised communities’ rights under threat across the world, and recession hitting the UK hard, this story feels especially timely. We see women coming together and supporting one another, showing the next generation that we haven’t given up. Target audience will include those seeking a positive tale of historical female strength or overcoming economic hardship, and those already interested in the packhorse project, literature, or the westerns genre. 

Want to be involved?

We have crowdfunded a portion of our budget, 20k. This is an ambitious project and we are conscious that £20k will only cover a part of our budget. We are still seeking funding for the last section of our film and are exploring private investment and/or co-production partnerships. If you are interested in helping us bring the film to life please drop us an email.