UnLonely Film Festival 5
Huntsville Station
Every weekday inmates are released from Huntsville State Penitentiary, taking in their first moments of freedom.
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Consider This
Watch this video to explore the film’s meaning and major themes a bit more. Talking with others about a shared arts experience can enrich our perspectives. Share your thoughts in the comment section, below!
Meet the Filmmakers
What is their why?
“With Huntsville Station, our goal was to create an experience that reflected a different side of the criminal justice system. We did not conduct interviews, hoping to craft an immersive sense of this moment of being released for parolees, observing their conversations and even just capturing the simple act of waiting in this pivotal time between prison and freedom. For those within prison, it is near-impossible to outwardly express emotion in front of other inmates for fear of appearing weak. So, we sought to humanize those on-screen by just having the camera be present with them for their first release of emotion before reconnecting with the outside world.”
Chris Filippone is a documentary filmmaker whose works explore physical labor, marginalized perspectives, and liminal spaces through aesthetically immersive approaches. He is a graduate of Stanford University’s M.F.A. Documentary Film program and has taught at the San Francisco Art Institute and Santa Clara University.
Jamie Meltze’s feature documentary films have been broadcast nationally on PBS and have screened at numerous film festivals worldwide. He teaches and is the Program Director of the M.F.A. Program in Documentary Film at Stanford University.
Can you remember a time when you felt overwhelmed by change? Can you think of someone you know whose life has been transformed who might be in a transition phase themselves right now and may need a word of encouragement?
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Wannabe
A hilarious, heart warming docu-drama about a group of elderly women who form a Spice Girls tribute band to earn a quick buck when one friend can’t pay the bills. 11:12 minutes.
Sundown
An elderly man gets a visit from his childhood best friend, who appears to him as a teenager. 10:36 mins.
Sticks and Stones
A man sorts through the debris of his childhood, seeking help to untangle the differences between his own anxiety and depression, and the impact of toxic masculinity.
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I would volunteer just to hang out and talk with these guys. Incarceration is a horrendous burden and moral support is universally appreciated if empathy can be channeled and accepted.
You can say a lot in just a few frames. This is a powerful moment of transition and it can go in many directions.