In Their Shoes: Unheard Stories of Reentry & Recovery
The doors are closed. There are no more screenings of this film.
Synopsis: Meet the men whose lives intersect in a prison reentry and addiction recovery creative writing program. Learn, from their own words, what lead them to commit their crimes, and witness the complexity of their ongoing stories on the outside, interspersed with interviews and appearances by Mayor Marty Walsh, Congressman Joe Kennedy III, Sheriff Michael Bellotti, Professor Randall Horton, Dr. Bertha Madras of Trump’s Commission on the Opiate Crisis, and more.
This film was created to amplify the unheard, disempowered, and often vilified populations in the drug crisis – the easiest targets caught in the most difficult cycles. Our hopes in sharing these stories were not only to inspire policy change and sentencing reform, but to promote public education regarding drug use and overdose prevention. This Fall, we are beginning to screen the film at festivals and tour nationally at universities, holding public panels and community events to raise
awareness and provoke the necessary conversations about mental health, criminal justice, addiction recovery, race, class, and healthcare access.
Rated
Language
Run Time
Starring
Marcel Harrison
Zachary Paul
Jean Torres-Vargas
Directed by
Produced by
Lawrence Schiller
Cheryl Buchanan
Executive Producer
James Wahlberg
Prod. Company
Director's Statement
“I wasn’t sure how I’d be received. We just jumped into the class and did some writing exercises and analyzed a poem. I could see the good it was doing, and I was really taken aback by how kind, welcoming, and respectful everyone was. There was just an energy in the room that felt like something good was taking place.”
Director's Bio
Taylor Katsanis, Director & Editor, graduated with a BFA in Film and Television from the Savannah College of Art and Design with a focus in directing. His short films have collected honors at film festivals across the country and his Atlanta-based production company, Backyard Productions, has served many happy clients over the years. Crew credits include feature films starring Kate Winslet and Gal Gadot, along with Amazon’s pilot episode for Z: The Beginning of Everything. Taylor is also an occasional actor, appearing on ID Discovery’s Swamp Murders and commercials for companies such as Zaxby’s, Napa, and Skip the Dishes
Awards
Boston Film Festival - United States - 2019
Mass Impact Award (In Their Shoes: Unheard Stories of Reentry & Recovery)
Nominations
CineMagic Film Fest - United States - 2019
Official Selection
Los Angeles CineFest - United States - 2019
Semi-Finalist
Spotlight Documentary Film Awards - United States - 2019
Gold Award Winner
Moving Parts Film Festival - United States - 2020
Jury Choice Award
A Show For A Change Film Festival - United States - 2020
Social Impact Award
Official selection
A Show For A Change Film Festival - United States - 2020
Moving Parts Film Festival - United States - 2020
The Virtual Reel Recovery Film Festival - United States - 2020
Boston Film Festival - United States - 2019
CineMagic Film Festival - United States - 2020