Finding Freedom Behind Bars
Sunday 17 May 2009
Sunday 17 May 2009 at Labia on Orange at 6.15pm:
An extraordinary screening
Finding Freedom Behind Bars
The Mindfulness Prison Project
A documentary by Jane Kennedy.
Cameraman: Matthys Mocke. Editor: Beverley Wilbraham. 2005.
Finding Freedom Behind Bars
The Mindfulness Prison Project
A documentary by Jane Kennedy.
Cameraman: Matthys Mocke. Editor: Beverley Wilbraham. 2005.
Sunday 17 May at 6.15pm
At Labia on Orange
Book with Labia at 021 424 5927
Ticket R40 includes a glass of wine or fruit juice after the screening plus light snacks.
Running time film + discussion – about 60 minutes
Introduced by Dr Simon Whitesman, director of the Institute for Mindfulness South Africa. There will be a Q & A session after the screening with several of those featured in the film.
This powerful and inspirational documentary by film-maker Jane Kennedy follows the work of Zen teachers Heila and Rodney Downey with hardened criminals in Malmesbury Prison. Practising mindfulness in our busy lives is hard enough. Imagine then applying this in the intense and inescapable environment of a high security prison, where being in the 'moment' means reflecting one's state of mind against a constant background of noise, lack of privacy, anger, hostility, vigilance, boredom and a sense of hopelessness – over and over for ten to thirty years.
This film captures beautifully how awareness in action has the capacity to transform minds and open hearts. Combining mindfulness, meditation and spiral dynamics, the prisoners are challenged to encounter themselves in new ways. By falling still and simply becoming aware of the present moment, they are able to confront their past whilst reconciling their actions. And in so doing, they find and express aspects of themselves beyond the limited self-concept of "criminal" and "prisoner".
The Downeys stand in the fire with these men, hearts wide open, refusing to give up on being a witness to their humanity, despite their crimes and even though most of these men and society gave up long ago. The results, spoken by the prisoners themselves, offer a profound understanding of how mindfulness practice works, and offer a glimmer of hope even in the darkest of places.
Heila and Rodney Downey will be at the screening to present their work and answer questions along with Mrs Hilda Immelman, the Head of Malmesbury New Prison (where the documentary was filmed) and parole conditions permitting, some of the inmates featured in the documentary who have subsequently been released (Johan Stander, Moses Makateng, Unati Sigenu).
Heila and Rodney Downey will be at the screening to present their work and answer questions along with Mrs Hilda Immelman, the Head of Malmesbury New Prison (where the documentary was filmed) and parole conditions permitting, some of the inmates featured in the documentary who have subsequently been released (Johan Stander, Moses Makateng, Unati Sigenu).