inside film

About

Inside Film began in August 2006 in HMP Wandsworth with the aim of using film as a means of creative expression and as an educational tool.

The projects begin with theoretical and practical workshops. A series of professionals and academics volunteer their time to come and talk to the students about the different areas of filmmaking (screenwriting, sound, documentary, etc).

Production groups come together, ideas are formulated and discussed, scripts written and storyboarded, films cast (again professional actors participate voluntarily) and finally, shooting commences. What follows is an exciting, intense, emotional and rewarding period as the films take shape. With shooting over, the groups begin to edit their films and lay down soundtracks. The whole process ends with screenings of the films.

One of the reasons why education often fails is because of a lack of engagement with the experiences, values and cultures of students from working class and ethnic minority backgrounds. Inside Film tries to create a space where those experiences and cultures are a valued and valid starting point for creative expression. When the students make their films, they ground them in their own experiences and use their own voices to tell their stories. The films demonstrated not just a replication or mimicking of the film and television world the students are so familiar with, but a critical engagement with it. Within a very short period of time they are able to make thoughtful and innovative films of a very high quality.

some facts 52% of male prisoners and 71% of female prisoners have no qualifications at all.

When you factor in child care and other benefits the annual cost of imprisoning a person can be as high as 50,000.

Around a quarter of all prisoners have been taken into care as a child.

Half of male prisoners, and a third of female prisoners have been excluded from school.

72% of male prisoners, and 70% of female prisoners were suffering from two or more mental disorders.

The UK has the highest rate of imprisonment in western Europe.

Over half of all prisoners are back inside within 2 years.

Films

All Inside Film

Bare Inequality
Deathwatch
The Interview
Who Am I?
Change
Who Benefits
Water

Bare Inequality

Category: Inside Film

In 2011 Inside Film began its first project outside the prison system. The project was part of Deirdre O'Neill's Ph.D called 'Film As A Radical Pedagogic Tool'. Open Book, which is based at Goldsmith's University and aims to get socially excluded people back into education, including Higher Education, booked rooms for us at the University. The project ran for 9 months - starting with theoretical classes and workshops. As usual we had many people contributing sessions to the classes. Over the 9 months the group gradually whittled down to three people who we worked with to make a film called 'Bare Inequality' according to the philosophy of Inside Film: that film is a means to not only encourage creativity and confidence, but also and crucially, critical thinking about the world.

Deathwatch

Category: Inside Film

Deathwatch (18 mins)"]This film is set in some indeterminate future where the death penalty has been reintroduced. A group of documentary filmmakers follow the last hours of William Gibson before he is due to be executed. What makes this execution different is that William has been offered money for his family if he agrees to allow his death to be screened live on the Internet. Meanwhile his lawyer is desperately trying to get a stay of execution. This film is a tragi-comic mockumentary that deals with the contemporary issue of reality TV in a shocking and thought provoking way.

The Interview

Category: Inside Film

The Interview (9 mins)"]Following a car crash the driver wakes up and finds himself in a bureaucratic limbo.Slowly both we and he become aware that this is a celestial interview where the Devil and God argue over whether his soul will go to Heaven or Hell. This is a film about right and wrong and the nature of judgement and about how our past deeds come back to haunt us.

Who Am I?

Category: Inside Film

Who Am I? (7mins)"]This is an angry and passionate film that attempts to make connections between personal identity and society. The filmmakers use an unconventional approach, mixing a series of dramatic vignettes and documentary imagery and inserts. This film suggests links between international events, such as the war in Iraq, and the struggle to survive on the streets of the UK. Along the way the film poses vital questions about the way in which we all lead our lives and the choices we make.

Change

Category: Inside Film

Change (10 mins)"]A short narrative piece, this film traces the journey of one prison inmate as he comes to terms with the crime he has committed and the effect it has had on himself and those who love him. When he takes part in a rehabilitation programme in the prison, we see him addressing his drug addiction. An up-lifting tale that suggests that it is possible to change our lives.

Who Benefits

Category: Inside Film

Who Benefits? (15 mins) is a film about the current state of austerity that takes a close look at what is really happening to people-the filmmakers interview politicans, charity workers and people on the street to try to understand the effect of the governments polices.

Water

Category: Inside Film

Water (15 mins) is a hilarious drama about partying, celebrity and drug use and what happens when things go wrong.is a hilarious drama about partying, celebrity and drug use and what happens when things go wrong.

Condition of the Working Class

This project is inspired by Engels’ book written in 1844, The Condition of the Working Class in England. The aim of the project is to draw parallels between then and now. Over the course of two months we will be working with people living in Manchester who will develop a dramatic performance that interprets Engels’ words in a contemporary context. The whole process will be filmed and will become part of a documentary reflecting on the condition of the working class in England today.
Going into production May 2012.
Location: Manchester.
In collaboration with Not Too Tame Theatre Co.
www.nottootametheatre.com

For More information see: www.conditionoftheworkingclass.info/
or contact: insidefilm@btinternet.com

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publications

An article in Film International, no.29, called ‘Film as Radical Pedagogy’ reflects on the Wandsworth Prison film project. You can download it HERE.

An article on the project was published in the November 2010 issue of The Prison Journal www.tpj.sagepub.com

events

Inside Film will be showing a selection of their films at the vortex film club www.vortexcinemaclub.co.uk

Times and Venue: Tuesday 11th March, 7pm
Vortex Cinema Club
Doopo Doopo
15 Dartmout Road
Forest Hill
London
SE23 2HN

Inside Film has three evenings at Calders’ Bookshop in September 2013. We are showing two short films made by the latest cohort of Inside Film students as well as a couple of shorts made on previous runs of the project. We are also showing Inside Film co-ordinator, Deirdre O’Neill’s documentary film about the work that Inside Film has been doing since 2006. The documentary ‘What Does This Picture Tell You?’ features interviews from former Inside Film students, educationalists and filmmakers interwoven with clips from the films students have made and the workshops Inside Film has run. The screenings will be followed by a Q&A with Deirdre and Inside Film students.

Times and Venue: Wednesday 11th September, 7pm, Friday 13th September, 7pm and Saturday 14th September, 7pm.
Calders’ bookshop is at: 51 The Cut, SE1, London, near Waterloo and Southwark tube.

constitution

To provide a film education to one of the most marginalised groups in society, prison inmates.
To provide inmates with a comprehensive experience of the film production process, from devising ideas through to post-production.
To provide a rigorous grounding in audi-visual literacy, so that the participants understand how media representations produce meaning through a culturally formed process of selection and combination.

To allow inmates to explore the issues and circumstances associated with their offending behavior through the creative process of filmmaking.
To offer a positive experience of education to a group who, according to social research, have had an overwhelmingly negative experience of educational systems and provision.
To foster collective working, decision-making and co-operation and mutual support and encouragement through group work on the projects.

To provide IT, research and organisational skills that are transferable to the employment market or further education.
To disseminate the films made by the inmates in as many ‘windows’ as possible to educate the wider public about the people society incarcerates.
To build links with other educational institutions to encourage prisoners upon their release to continue their studies.

To influence policy making decisions as they relate to prison education.
In addition to the primary focus on prison education, Inside Film will also work with disadvantaged young people on filmmaking projects to promote a critical engagement with the media and educational opportunities.

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