Five finalists for the first-ever Sing Sing Film Festival award were announced today by The Marshall Project, the nonprofit newsroom covering criminal justice.
The award winner will be announced on Oct. 24 by a jury of five men incarcerated in Sing Sing prison in Ossining, New York, before an audience of incarcerated people, New York state corrections officials and outside guests.
The Marshall Project is committed to providing news and information to incarcerated audiences. Along with the print magazine News Inside and video series Inside Story, the Sing Sing Film Festival is part of The Marshall Project’s effort to bring valuable and fresh perspectives behind prison walls.
The five documentary features on the shortlist are:
- As We Speak, directed by J.M. Harper (Trailer)
- Commuted, directed by Nailah Jefferson (Trailer)
- Daughters, co-directed by Natalie Rae and Angela Patton (Trailer)
- For Our Children, directed by Débora Souza Silva (Trailer)
- Songs from the Hole, directed by Contessa Gayles (Teaser)
“This is a real first in New York,” said Lawrence Bartley of The Marshall Project. “Criminal justice films have not traditionally been subjected to the judgment of people who really know the system from the inside.
“Incarcerated people have relevant expertise here,” said Bartley, who is publisher of The Marshall Project Inside, the news products for prison audiences produced by the Pulitzer Prize-winning newsroom. “The Marshall Project organized this film festival because we wanted to recognize the value and importance of this audience.” Nearly 2 million people are incarcerated in prisons and jails across America.
The five finalists were selected by Marshall Project staff from among nearly 40 criminal justice documentaries released in the last two years. The films were then reviewed by officials from the New York Department of Corrections and Community Supervision before being submitted to the incarcerated jury of five men.
Documentary filmmaker El Sawyer visited Sing Sing in August to train the jury on how to evaluate films. He spent five hours with the men at Sing Sing, discussing the finer points of viewing and critiquing films to evaluate the clarity and power of storytelling, cinematography and the film’s authenticity in depicting the lived experiences of incarcerated and justice-impacted people.
A program of short films will also be screened at the festival on Oct. 24:
- San Quentin Media Center in a Box by Rahsaan Thomas
- Sam and Omar by Nadav Kurtz
- Inside Story — selections from the new season of The Marshall Project’s television show for incarcerated audiences
All materials will be submitted to the jury on DVD because there is no internet in prison.
“Given that my film explores issues within our criminal justice system, I am grateful for this opportunity to contribute to a dialogue that is both honest and impactful,” said Débora Souza Silva, director of For Our Children. “I hope this initiative by The Marshall Project’s Sing Sing Film Festival inspires meaningful changes in criminal justice reform and fosters a deeper reflection on how such issues are documented.”
“Every film I watch from here on out, I’m going to be critiquing it … to see the development of the characters, to see if the scenery is a character in the movie itself,” said Alonzo Miles, a jury member incarcerated at Sing Sing.
“Sing Sing Correctional Facility is pleased to offer a new educational opportunity to our population of incarcerated individuals,” said Sing Sing Superintendent Marlyn Kopp. “The chance to learn about the art and techniques of film, to develop and draft critiques of the selected criminal justice-themed films and select a winner for the film festival provides value to the opinions of the incarcerated individuals.
“It opens up communication with the men inside and people on the outside,” Kopp continued. “We are glad to collaborate with The Marshall Project and host this film festival.”
Please reach out to Rahima Nasa Kazmi at rkazmi@themarshallproject.org to learn more about the Sing Sing Film Festival.
