Posts Tagged ‘The Farm: 10 Down’
An Advocate for Inmates
I became an advocate for inmates while I was in prison during my early years. I was a jail house lawyer, classified as a militant and there was a group of us who used to practice martial arts together on the yard who were often found in stand-offs against some of the groups who were involved in raping other young inmates. As I grew older in prison I was always developing new programs, classes or life enrichment programs for others. I believe that I was a part of God’s movement that gradually brought about change in prison on the tail of a federal court order that mandated sweeping changes to take place in the prison.
Once I was released from prison I became involved in a number of prison ministries, and developed several legislative advocacy groups geared toward making changes in the laws so that deserving men and women could return to society. I left a lot of friends in prison. Them and their families need voices and dedicated people like myself and the many others who have gained their released to do what we can to make a change.
Posted by Ashanti
THE FARM: 10 DOWN Premieres at Angola Prison
THE FARM: 10 DOWN TO PREMIERE AT ANGOLA PRISON ON JUNE 3, 2009
The sequel to “THE FARM: LIFE INSIDE ANGOLA PRISON”, Academy nominated and Emmy winning documentary, will also be broadcast on the National Geographic Channel, Tuesday, June 16th 8:00 p.m. EST under the title, “A DECADE BEHIND BARS: RETURN TO THE FARM”.
Two former inmates featured in THE FARM will return to Angola for this “red carpet premiere” and participate with inmates in a Q&A with two time Academy nominated filmmaker Jonathan Stack and Warden Burl Cain.
NEW YORK, NY (May, 27, 2009) – In 1997, the documentary THE FARM: LIFE INSIDE ANGOLA PRISON reached an enormous and receptive audience and garnered many of cinema’s top awards, including the Sundance Grand Jury Prize, the LA Film Critic’s Award, the New York Film Critic’s Award, an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary, 2 Emmys and 4 Emmy nominations.
Now, Jonathan Stack and his company, Highest Common Denominator Media Group, bring us a powerful new documentary that reconnects with the surviving characters to witness first hand the impact of THE FARM and the intervening decade on their spirits and their sense of purpose. The film also chronicles profound changes at Angola Prison, once known as “the bloodiest prison in America”, where violence is down 74% and a philosophy of “Corrections” promotes education, rehabilitation and reconciliation to increase public safety.
In a groundbreaking departure from traditional film openings, THE FARM: TEN DOWN will premiere inside Angola Prison on June 3rd, 2009, before the inmates, wardens and correctional officers who have allowed their stories to be the source of documentary films for over a decade. The premier, like the film, exhibits the transformative power of hope, even behind bars. The film will be shown on the prison’s closed circuit television station, LSPTv, for the 5,100 inmates.
Two of the subjects of THE FARM – Ashanti Witherspoon and Bishop Tanniehill – will return to Angola Prison for the premier event. Ashanti was granted parole in 1999 after 27 years behind bars and Bishop was pardoned by Governor Kathleen Blanco in 2007 after nearly 50 years at Angola. Their stories help to inspire other inmates. Ashanti and Bishop will participate in a Q&A with inmates following the film’s premiere They will be joined by Q&A with inmates following the film’s premiere They will be joined by Warden Burl Cain, the warden of Angola Prison for the last decade, and by Jonathan Stack, director of the films.
The footage from the Q&A and the screening will be available online for the public and the film team will twitter live from the event updating the public regularly on the HCD Media Group-run website: www.GabrielCity.com, an online community for those affected by incarceration.
THE FARM: 10 DOWN will have its national broadcast premier on the National Geographic Channel on Tuesday, June 16th at 8pm EST, as A DECADE BEHIND BARS: RETURN TO THE FARM. National Geographic Channel is also hosting free streaming of THE FARM and WILDEST SHOW IN THE SOUTH, Jonathan Stack’s documentary about the Angola Prison Rodeo, online at Natgeotv.com/farm. They are also both available free on HULU.com
For the partners of Highest Common Denominator Media Group – Jonathan Stack, David Deniger, and Mara-Michelle Batlin, – the release of THE FARM: 10 DOWN marks a major milestone in achieving their mission to use the power of story-telling to illustrate the elements of our humanity that unite all of us, the shared values that are our highest common denominator,
HCD Media Group is also launching GabrielCity.com, an online community offering support to those affected by incarceration.
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THE FARM: 10 DOWN is directed for Highest Common Denominator Media Group by Jonathan Stack and produced by James McKay. Executive Producers are David Deniger and Mara-Michelle Batlin. Nancy Novack is the editor and co-director.
For more information please visit: http://www.hcdmediagroup.com
Posted by hcdmedia
Preview clips from THE FARM: 10 DOWN
The National Geographic channel has posted some preview clips of THE FARM: 10 DOWN, which will premiere on National Geographic as A DECADE BEHIND BARS: RETURN TO THE FARM. Check out some of these great videos of Warden Cain and Ashanti Witherspoon.
Posted by hcdmedia
Where are you?
When THE FARM was broadcast in 1998 it was the highest rated documentary on A & E. If I remember correctly, it got about a 3.0 Nielsen rating which nowadays would be phenomenal, but even then was quite amazing. Over the years, the film was shown again and again; resold to A & E, broadcast on Starzz and the Sundance Channel, distributed throughout the world. The film is used in school curricula, thousands of dvds have been purchased at Angola’s Prison Museum gift store alone and it is iconic amongst people who work in our criminal justice system.
Indeed, over the years countless numbers of people have seen the film and uniformly they ask the same question; Whatever happened to the men in THE FARM. “Did George raise the $3000 for his appeal?”, “Did Ashanti get to take that bath?”, “Did the Governor ever sign Bishop Tanniehill’s pardon?” Finally, we’re finishing the THE FARM: 10 DOWN and we can answer everyone’s questions. The film is airing on National Geographic, but the challenge is how do we let all the people who saw THE FARM know it’s happening?
Posted by Jonathanstack
My education at Angola Prison
Over the years I learned that I could grow in strength if I didn’t blame others for the negative things that had occurred in my life and accepted responsibility for my own actions. I learned that I had a stubborn side of me that really gave me the strength and determination to stay focused on the path that I had choose to travel. I learned how to detach from many of the events that were taking place around me so that I wouldn’t be effected emotionally and if I maintained control of my emotions I was have a clear enough mind to think through each situation I faced. I learned a lot about God and my relationship with God gave me a sense of hope that one day “everything is going to be alright.” I learned that I had the power to reshape the world around me by the words that I speak, the thoughts that I think and the prayers that I prayed. I also learned to love people (it was a gradual process, but I learned that it was really alright to love people as simply being who they were). All of those things gave me a sense of freedom and a different sort of power within me.
Posted by Ashanti
The Journey of Healing in Angola Prison
It was several years before I decided to change my life. I had seen a lot of violence and was classified as a jail jouse lawyer and a militant, but it wasn’t until I had been confined to a maximum security cell (I had gotten caught with two knives in my possession) for about a year that I seriously began to think about my life, my family and everything that I had lost that the reality of my 75-year entence began to sink into my mind. At that point I hadn’t ever had the opportunity to see my daughter and that caused me a lot of anger and grief. It was also during that time of confinement that I decided to change and never go back to the life I had lived. It was the beginning of a long journey that would be filled with trials, set-backs and victories, but it was a journey that I wouldn’t turn away from.
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Ashanti Witherspoon spent 27 years in Angola Prison. In 1999 he was granted parole. Since leaving prison Ashanti has become a motivational speaker and is devoted to mentoring at-risk youth. He was featured in Jonathan Stack’s film THE FARM and THE FARM: 10 DOWN, which will be released June 16th, 2009 on National Geographic Channel.
Posted by Ashanti
Birth of a City
This week the team has been working like crazy to get this website up and running (albeit in a beta stage). It’s critical to get it just right, because it’s inside ‘Gabriel City’ where the impact of what we do takes shape. The good news is that a website is an ever evolving entity and what doesn’t work will reveal itself over time with use and can be adjusted accordingly. We are hoping that many of you will offer the kind of criticism and contributions that will allow us to achieve our goals.
So here are the “whats” and the “whys.”
Gabriel City has two main “whats.” On one hand we want to be a community created site, think Wikipedia, for all matters concerning criminal justice. From how to visit a loved one behind bars (google maps for jails and prisons) to what types of organizations exist to support victims of crimes, from links to local, national and international news sources, to advice and ideas about critical issues of our day; the site will be an important and comprehensive resource for the millions upon millions most directly affected by crime.
The other emphasis is for the site to be a storytelling venue. Imagine a kind of YouTube for criminal justice content. There is no doubt that there is a strong link between the experience of incarceration and the artistic expression it inspires. And yet, while there certainly is an enormous amount of talent and creativity within prisons, this will not just be an art center for inmates.
No, Gabriel City exists to harness the power of storytelling for the greater good of society. We want to break the endless cycle of crime and incarceration that destroys lives and communities which ultimately only leads to more crime. By empowering people with a way to tell their story, and an audience to listen to it, we begin to heal the wounds of time and crime. That is why Gabriel City needs to grow.
To be clear, we are neither romantics who believe all criminals are victims of the system, nor do we believe that all inmates are animals unworthy of forgiveness. And while victims of crime must not be silenced nor their pain ignored, policy issues affecting the criminal justice system can not be guided strictly by their suffering. Finding the correct balance is not easy and requires dialogue, reflection and lot of hard work and dedication. That is what we are going to launch….together.
Posted by Jonathanstack