UPenn grad stars in new film ‘Rule Breakers’ highlighting Afghanistan’s all-girls robotics team

PHILADELPHIA - ‘Rule Breakers’ is a film about just that: an outstanding group of girls who defied the odds and broke rules to become Afghanistan’s first all-girls robotics team.

The story dives into the beginnings of Roya Mahboob's life as she observed and lived through the many limitations placed on her and other girls while in Afghanistan.

Roya Mahboob, the founder of Afghanistan’s women’s robotics team, executive produced the film and formed a bond with the cast members that was similar to that of the real team. 

"I think my favorite part of filming was probably having Roya on set. She is such an incredible presence in such a powerful and uplifting presence. And when she told us that, we reminded her of the girls from the actual team and that it was giving her flashbacks of being the leader of this team," said Amber Afzali. "That just warmed our hearts and that made us feel like, oh my gosh, we're part of something really big, and we're part of telling the story that normally doesn't get to get the screentime that now this story is getting."

"In 2017, they were looking at ways to advertise all of the good work that could come out of Afghanistan. When girls are given opportunities, when girls are given the chance to take computer classes, to be involved in Stem. And so they started this robotics team that just showcased the power, that and intelligence and just absolute resiliency that girls from Afghanistan have when they're given the chance," said Afzali. 

Amber Afzali (center) | Photo Provided by Angel Studios

Amber Afzali was a ‘very shy kid’ whose parents put her in acting classes to help break her out of her shell. She then went on to focus on her studies which led her to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. 

Afzali is a proud UPenn alumna who earned dual degrees in Political Science with a focus on International Relations and Psychology. 

It only makes sense that she would then find out she landed a role in ‘Rule Breakers' while she was in the city of brotherly love. 

"I was in Philadelphia walking away from the Cinemark that's on Penn's campus and I got a call from my manager that was like, ‘how would you like to go travel to this place for filming?’ And I was like I got it, Oh my God, I got it! And that was just an incredible, like, surreal experience. So, Philly has good memories for me," said the actress. 

So off she went to the movie's filming locations, Marrakesh, Morocco and Budapest, Hungary to play Esin. 

Who is Esin? 

"Esin is a sweetheart. Esin is a multi-layered, amazing girl. She has a lot of struggles in how she lives her life, just because there are certain limitations placed on her, from her family, from society. And she's a rule breaker," said Afzali. "She's not afraid to tell a fib to get to, you know, being a rule breaker to being where she wants to be, and she finds her voice, and it's a beautiful way that she does it. And she's also just a smart, talented friend like every other girl in the world. She's just trying to figure out our place in the world."

Afzali was able to connect and understand Esin, being an Afghan woman herself. However, it was the extra work and dedication that helped her dig deeper into her culture and truly grasp the magnitude of problems the all-girls robotics team faced in Afghanistan. 

"After reading up on the girls and looking into what their stories and their lives were like, watching these Ted talks that these girls did. It really was a learning curve, and to understanding the culture and wanting to making sure that I portrayed it appropriately and and in a way that is still relatable. Because at the end of the day Afghan girls were like every other person, you know, and if you just because of where you're born, it doesn't make you different in the sense of your ambitions, your dreams, your hopes, your fears, your struggles."

Afghan rights for women and girls have been negatively impacted for years. 

According to UNWomen, last August, de facto authorities announced the ratification of the "Law on the Promotion of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice," which imposes more rules for Aghan women and girls. Those requirements include women covering their entire bodies and faces and forbidding women’s voices in public. Women have also been prohibited from interacting with non-Muslims, using public transport by themselves, looking at men to whom they are not related by blood or marriage and in many cases, girls are not allowed to go to school or study.

With the climate of the country now, would it be possible for Roya to make the all-girls robotics team in 2025?

" I think it would have been extremely stifled in the current political climate that is in Afghanistan," said Afzali. "I don't I don't want to be a cynic when I say it, but I don't know if it would have been able to get formed. I think these amazing opportunities, these miraculous things that come out of hard regions and hard times, they come out because there's people who are willing to give them an opportunity. And Roya was incredible. And I know that she would have fought just as hard today or in 2022 as she did in 2017." 

Afzali explained how Rule Breakers Director Bill Guttentag describes the film as a ‘roller coaster of emotions.’

With the use of her Penn education and lessons learned while preparing for her role as Esin, Amber Afzali is proud to show off the incredible new film. 

'If even just a handful of girls walk out of the theater feeling more inspired to follow their dreams or to pursue STEM, that would be a win," said Afzali. "I hope audiences overall just take away that women are powerful. They need to be empowered. We need to give them opportunities to showcase their power and that they are resilient, that women from these regions, that it's not just all struggle and strife, it's also, these successes that they have and they're showcasing their strengths and their education and their intellect."

‘Rule Breakers’ is available to watch in theaters beginning March 7.