Each year 25,000 inmates are released in Huntsville, Texas — one of the largest prison towns in America. Monday through Friday, the glass doors swing open on the front of the Civil War-era, red-brick prison they call The Walls. The inmates exit and shuffle along the sidewalk, some smiling, some pensive, all shouldering onion sacks full of belongings. With no one to greet them, most of them stream past the private homes and prison offices toward the Greyhound bus station three blocks away. For hours, until buses have carried them off, there are lines of released prisoners everywhere near the station: a line for bus tickets, a line to cash prison checks, a line to buy new clothes.
- Documentary Films
12th Street
Drama
45 mins
United States
English
Synopsis
Title:
12th Street
Original Title:
12th Street
Production Year:
2020
Producer:
Matthijs Heesemans
Writer:
Gregory Lovett, Matthijs Heesemans
Music:
Raborn Johnson
Director's Interview
Festival:
2020
Category:
Documentary Films
Country:
United States
Language:
English
Director's Statement
This documentary features a number of these newly released prisoners and explores one of the most critical issues in the national debate over criminal justice reform: the flood of prisoners returning to American communities without the guidance and support needed for a successful transition back to society. What awaits them on the outside? How are they prepared to deal the new world? Where do they go from here?
