A Call to Spy: Ordinary Women, Extraordinary Courage

INSA took on Hollywood on September 18 with a special edition Wednesday Wisdom event featuring Sarah Megan Thomas, the writer, producer, and lead actress of the newly released film, A Call to Spy. The film highlights the stories of three exceptional female spies who united in Winston Churchill’s "Secret Army" to defeat the Nazi regime in France during World War II.

Sarah Megan Thomas began by describing her immediate fascination with the perseverance and courage of Virginia Hall, notably the most successful World War II spy, as well as the first ever female field agent. Despite having a wooden leg, Virginia didn’t let her disability define her or hold her back, which Sarah said she felt was particularly important to portray in the film.

Watch the full program recording!

While this film brings to light the accomplishments of three amazing women, many may not know that it was also produced by an all-female team. Ms. Thomas is a strong advocate for promoting women in the filmmaking industry and shared her commitment to uncovering previously untold stories of strong young women like Virginia Hall, Noor Inayat Khan, and Vera Atkins. Audience members as young as 8 years old weighed in to share their admiration for the movie, support of Ms. Thomas, and excitement for more of her projects to come.

Sarah gave the audience an inside scoop into the research process for the film, which involved reading through unclassified “spy files” including original letters from the women in the field and reports on how they were perceived during training. She was also able to connect with close relatives, friends, and former colleagues to gain further insight into the true characters of Virginia, Noor, and Vera.

This film tells the story of three powerful women from different backgrounds and of different nationalities who overcame adversity and discrimination to resist evil. It was their diversity, Ms. Thomas concluded, that made a critical difference in their success.