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Los Angeles Times
02-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
‘Miss Austen' imagines the motives behind Jane Austen's sister burning her letters
For decades, English novelist Jane Austen has been a constant source of inspiration for filmmakers and TV creators looking to adapt her work, but also authors who want to expand her world and our understanding of it. Such is the case with 'Miss Austen,' the 2020 novel by Gill Hornby. The fictional account focuses on Jane's sister, Cassandra, and her decision to destroy much of Jane's correspondence from over the years — something rooted in fact. 'Miss Austen' is the first of three novels by Hornby that immerses readers in the lives of Jane and her close-knit family, which the author found 'completely captivating.' 'They were all bright and all rather extraordinary, although Jane was the most extraordinary of all,' Hornby said. 'She would write in the day and then read aloud in the family circle at night, which they all did.' Hornby's novel is not unlike a Jane Austen novel, filled with wit, playful bickering, tragedy and romance. But it was the love between sisters Jane and Cassandra that inspired this particular book, which has now been adapted for television. 'Miss Austen,' a four-part miniseries, will premiere at 9 p.m. PST Sunday on PBS as part of 'Masterpiece.' (Subsequent episodes will air on Sundays, with the final two airing May 18; they also will stream on the PBS app and The period drama, starring actor Keeley Hawes as Cassandra Austen, premiered in the U.K. on BBC One in February to favorable reviews. Hornby was joined by executive producer Christine Langan of Bonnie Productions, which produced the series for 'Masterpiece,' at a screening of 'Miss Austen' at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on Sunday, where they discussed Jane's legacy and adapting the book for TV. It's the production company's first TV series. 'I absolutely loved the read,' Langan said about why she chose to produce it. 'I was moved to tears by the end, and I found it a completely unique angle on a writer I have adored for decades, and very immediate and gripping and relatable.' Langan, who has previously produced award-winning series and films including 'Cold Feet,' 'The Deal' and 'The Queen,' said she loved the idea of rehabilitating the reputation of Cassandra, who was 'an ever-present good influence, good source of support and love to one of the world's most famous writers.' In the series, Cassandra is slightly younger than her counterpart in the book, and that partly had to do with Hawes, whose dramatic and comedic abilities were crucial to the role. 'We had already decided to make Cassandra a little younger than she is in the novel, the feeling being that middle-aged women are every bit as invisible in this society as elderly women,' Langan said. 'We loved [Hawes'] versatility and her grace, and then she met us on an equal footing with the same vision and passion.' 'Keely has a huge and brilliant reputation in the U.K. She's hugely loved,' she added. That stands in contrast with Cassandra, who has long been viewed with some consternation by historians of her sister. She burned all but 160 of Jane's letters, which could have provided scholars and fans alike with more details about the author and her life. There are various theories as to why Cassandra chose to destroy them, including preventing negative scrutiny of Jane and wanting to preserve her sister's legacy. The series, like the book, attempts to recast Cassandra more positively, along with her motive for destroying Jane's letters, which includes keeping them away from family members like the sly Mary Austen (played by Jessica Hynes), who was married to James Austen, brother to Cassandra and Jane. We also see flashbacks of young Cassandra (Synnøve Karlsen) and Jane (Patsy Ferran) as the events in the letters come to life, revealing their true nature. The story is mostly set in Kintbury, a village in Hampshire, England, where Hornby has resided for more than 30 years and where she first learned about Cassandra. 'I feel that Cassandra found me,' she said. While the letters are central to the drama, 'Miss Austen' is also about Cassandra and her fiancé, Tom Fowle (Calam Lynch), whose family resided in Kintbury. He died of yellow fever during a voyage to the Caribbean, and Cassandra never married. 'I knew that she [Cassandra] was there on the last Christmas that they had together, and that she went down to our gate at dawn on a January morning and said goodbye to Tom and never saw him again,' Hornby said. 'And she began slightly to haunt me because I've always been quite obsessed about those women in history.' It's a notable time to reconsider Cassandra's role in Jane's life: This year marks the 250th anniversary of Jane's birth. Hornby said it was Cassandra who gave Jane the ability to produce 'six of the greatest novels in the English language' by taking care of her when she was sick and running the household so Jane could write. And two and a half centuries later, Jane's stories continue to delight readers and inspire creators like Hornby and Langan. 'She wrote about what it's like to have a mom, a sister, to fall in love, have a roof over your head, what the weather's like and how annoying the neighbors are — all stuff we all still do,' Hornby said. 'She speaks to us in a way that none of her contemporaries do.' 'And she's fantastically funny,' Langan adds. Imagining the Austens and their lives has been fruitful territory for Hornby, whose subsequent works, 'Godmersham Park' and the upcoming novel 'The Elopement,' slated for release in the U.K. in May and in the U.S. in October, also are centered on the family. And Hornby's partnership with Langan will continue; the producer has already optioned 'The Elopement.' This year also marks the 30th anniversary of the TV adaptation of 'Pride and Prejudice' that starred Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle and the 20th anniversary of the film version, with Keira Knightley and Matthew MacFadyen. (Netflix recently greenlighted a limited series too.) 'Miss Austen' also contains references the novel — making the show's premiere this year feel like a full-circle moment. 'It's so fascinating that she's still going,' Hornby said. 'She's very much a posthumous success, and she really wanted success. She was clever enough to know that what she was writing was really good.'
Los Angeles Times
18-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
‘Wheel of Time' boss unpacks the hardest book-to-screen moment in Season 3
Welcome to Screen Gab, the newsletter for everyone who could use a fantasy getaway. 'The Wheel of Time' concluded it's third season this week and showrunner Rafe Judkins stopped by Guest Spot to tell us about the section from the beloved book franchise that proved most challenging to adapt for the screen. Also in Screen Gab No. 177, TV critic Robert Lloyd looks at the documentary of acclaimed cartoonist Art Spiegelman and culture columnist Mary McNamara shares her thoughts on why 'Government Cheese' is worth your time. Must-read stories you might have missed Bella Ramsey is embracing the difficult parts of Ellie and 'The Last of Us': The star of HBO's postapocalyptic drama said shooting Season 2 was much more grueling, but that it helped the actor understand more about themself. After losing his wife of 43 years, David Cronenberg turned the camera on grief itself: The Canadian director reflects on body horror, Trump, Elon Musk, legacy and his new movie 'The Shrouds' — and whether it might be the last one he ever makes. They found the music of 'Sinners' together — just as they have from the beginning: In their unique collaboration, Ryan Coogler and Ludwig Göransson played music together during much of the prep for the film. In 'Étoile,' 'Bunheads' creators return to ballet but with a cross-Atlantic twist: Amy Sherman-Palladino and Dan Palladino are back with a new Prime Video series that puts their love of ballet in the forefront. Recommendations from the film and TV experts at The Times 'Art Spiegelman: Disaster Is My Muse' ( Presented under the umbrella of 'American Masters,' Molly Bernstein and Philip Dolin's film focuses on comics artist Spiegelman, whose landmark work 'Maus,' originally serialized from 1980 to 1991, deals with his family's experience in the Holocaust — portraying the Jews as mice and the Nazis as cats — and his own attempts to come to terms with its lingering effects, on them and himself, by drawing his way through it. The film functions also as a lesson in comics structure and as an exciting, strangely moving history of alternative comics — from Mad magazine and Zap! (old friends Robert Crumb and Bill Griffith appear) to Raw, the large-format magazine founded by Spiegelman and wife Françoise Mouly (the art editor of the New Yorker since 1993), and into the age of autobiographical graphic novels 'Maus' made possible. That 'Maus,' with its depictions of fascism, deportation and concentration camps, has been banned from American libraries and schoolrooms is sadly ironic and distressingly timely. — Robert Lloyd 'Government Cheese' (AppleTV+) The word 'kaleidoscope' was coined by the mechanism's inventor from ancient Greek words that add up, more or less, to 'the observation of beautiful forms.' It's a term, and a meaning, that applies to 'Government Cheese,' an ever-shifting bewitchment of a series. Seen one way, it is the story of Hampton Chambers (David Oyelowo), a cheerfully charismatic grifter, recently home from prison. Armed with a self-sharpening drill bit of his own invention, he is trying to go straight despite a justifiably dubious reception by most of his family and the fallout from a very unfortunate event that put him in debt to a very peculiar (i.e. French Canadian) criminal family. Twist the image just slightly, however, and 'Government Cheese' becomes more of a spiritual worldview, in which the big picture is blurred at the edges, but the details stand out in brilliant clarity. While in prison, Hampton has God, or at least a form of God, explained to him by a fellow prisoner as a force which makes its grand plan known through a series of small but collectively impactful events. Hampton now believes that the universe is sending him a series of messages — a jumping frog tells him to take a leap of faith, etc. These may or may not be real but certainly resonate with anyone who has searched for similar signs in a chaotic world. Co-created by Paul Hunter and Aeysaha Carr, the series is set in 1969 Chatsworth and based on Hunter's memories of his childhood. The aerospace industry figures heavily as does the hyper-stylized earth-tone fashions of the times. Heavily influenced by the Coen brothers, the show often feels like a cross between a fable and a fever dream, but powerful performances by Oyelowo and Simone Missick as Hampton's wife, Astoria, keep it grounded in its own reality. A well-known director of music videos, Hunter infuses 'Government Cheese' with a cinematic vibrancy — Chatsworth has never looked so cool — that keeps you watching even as you wonder what exactly you are looking at. — Mary McNamara READ MORE >> 'Government Cheese' stays outside the box with a surreal Black family in the Valley A weekly chat with actors, writers, directors and more about what they're working on — and what they're watching The jam-packed Season 3 finale of 'The Wheel of Time,' available to stream on Prime Video, included multiple deaths and plenty of betrayals. It's no small feat adapting the narrative complexity of Robert Jordan's fantasy book franchise for TV. In this week's Guest Spot, showrunner Rafe Judkins discussed the book-inspired moment that was most challenging to adapt for screen, what he's watching and more. — Yvonne Villarreal You're given eight episodes to condense so much book content into a coherent narrative. Three seasons in, what have you learned about adapting a saga like 'The Wheel of Time' for TV in that framework? Do you wish you had more episodes for Season 3? When I originally pitched the show, it was for eight seasons with 10 episodes in each season. I thought that, even though limited, this would be a way to get through all 15 books of Robert Jordan's 'The Wheel of Time' series. Unfortunately, production reality often intersects with creative goals, so we've had to try to pull off the same story with just eight episodes a season. It leads to a lot of condensing and re-building of the narrative to feel smooth for people who aren't at all familiar with the books. But the thing about TV is that you always wish you had more time. I think epic fantasy television is at its best and allows the stories to really build and pay off when there are 10 to 13 episodes per season. Give me an example of an element from the novels that was a challenge to bring to life in Season 3. How did you figure it out? We had to figure out a way to bring a section of the books called 'The Road to the Spear' to life in Season 3. It's incredibly challenging because in the books, it's basically one character who sees an entire culture's history through the eyes of his ancestors, one story after another after another, moving backward in time. It's one of the greatest parts of the entire book series, but to bring it to life on television, we had to find a way to emotionally connect the audience to these disparate stories, so we had the actor (Josha Stradowski who plays Rand al'Thor) actually wear six different full prosthetic makeups and play the lead character in each of the vignettes moving backward through time. I think it worked well to really help the audience emotionally connect to these stories and simultaneously feel and understand their impact on the character of Rand, who's witnessed these visions. What have you watched recently that you're recommending to everyone you know? With my whole life contained in the scripted sphere, I actually usually end up watching comedies or reality TV when I've got time to myself. And because I'm traveling so much for work, I'm usually watching shows from all over the world — right now I'm loving 'Traitors' (UK and U.S. versions!) [Peacock], 'Australian Survivor' and the British show 'Taskmaster.' What's your go-to comfort watch, the film or TV show you return to again and again? 'Xena: Warrior Princess' [Prime Video]! It's insane at times (insert clip of Xena doing 70 flips after she's thrown herself out of a pine tree to land on a ship), but it was so different than anything else on TV when it came out. There was also such an emotional core and connection to those characters and I grew up watching them, so it feels like a piece of home when I see it now.
Los Angeles Times
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
A Liza Minnelli doc and an '80s L.A. slasher for your weekend rotting
Welcome to Screen Gab, the newsletter for everyone just trying to find all that jazz. In this week's edition, we recommend two films that bring the comforts of nostalgia: 'Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story,' a film that spotlights Liza Minnelli's life in the 1970s, and 'Out of the Dark,' a 1988 L.A. slasher that our film critic Amy Nicholson recently rediscovered. Also in Screen Gab No. 176, we help refresh your memory on where 'The Last of Us' left off and 'Yellowjackets' star Sarah Desjardins stops by to unpack her character's mommy issues. Must-read stories you might have missed After a 15-hour shift on 'The Pitt,' Noah Wyle reviews Dr. Robby's day: The star and executive producer of Max's hit medical drama spoke with The Times about the whirlwind first season. Shape-shifting Will Poulter is getting too good to sideline: The London-born actor is distinctive in a flurry of recent work, including the movies 'Warfare' and 'Death of a Unicorn,' plus a new episode of 'Black Mirror.' 'The Conners' are saying goodbye: The cast and producers of the 'Roseanne' spin-off speak about the show's topical storylines. After decades of pushing, stunts will get their own Oscar: The Oscars will finally honor stunt performers with a new award for achievement in stunt design, debuting at the 100th Academy Awards in 2028. Recommendations from the film and TV experts at The Times 'Liza: A Truly Terrific Absolutely True Story' ( Bruce David Klein's documentary on Liza Minnelli, presented under the umbrella of PBS' 'American Masters' series, will be catnip to (us) fans, but those not already in that club may be persuaded to join. 'Liza,' which dutifully surveys the star's professional and personal life — multiple marriages and miscarriages, stints in rehab — presents Minnelli as more than the sum of her influences, yet very much shaped by her associations with Kay Thompson, Charles Aznavour, Bob Fosse, Fred Ebb and Halston, not to mention the genetic inheritance from parents Judy Garland and Vincente Minnelli. Both enormously successful and somehow — at least in my mind — underrated, Minnelli's stock in trade has been a particular, powerful combination of vulnerability and determination, of seeming like the strange yet compelling kid in the back of the class. The testimony of various friends and lovers and mentors (they all seem to blur together) including Ben Vereen, Michael Feinstein, makeup artist Christina Smith, Ebb and his songwriting partner, John Kander — who wrote the score for 'Cabaret,' Minnelli's breakthrough film, and 'Liza with a Z,' her Emmy-winning television concert — paint a warm, unaffected person you might like to know and who would make you feel she was glad to know you. — Robert Lloyd 'Out of the Dark' (Shudder, Tubi) This 1988 sleazy slasher flick is about a clown-masked serial killer who murders the actresses of a phone-sex hotline in downtown Los Angeles. There's a lot of nudity, saxophones and electric guitars, with corpses dumped from MacArthur Park to Studio City's El Royale Hotel. I can't costume it as a classy noir even with a shot of a spiral staircase swirling into the 3rd Street Tunnel. But director Michael Schroeder delivers all the schlock you want while juicing this pulp into something weirder, like casting 'Harold and Maude's' Bud Cort as a lovelorn accountant and butching up the cult legend Divine into a mustachioed male LAPD detective. If you dig top-tier retro L.A. trash, make this a double feature with 1989's 'Death Spa' (Tubi). — Amy Nicholson Everything you need to know about the film or TV series everyone's talking about After a two-year wait, everyone's favorite fungal zombie apocalypse show is finally back: The second season of 'The Last of Us' premieres Sunday. Created by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, HBO's acclaimed survival drama is set in a world that has been ravaged by the outbreak of a mysterious mutant cordyceps fungus that turns human hosts into horrific, mindless monsters. An adaptation of the hit video game of the same name, the nine-episode first season followed gruff smuggler-turned-surrogate father figure Joel (Pedro Pascal) and his teen charge Ellie (Bella Ramsey) on a cross-country journey to help find a way to save the world. Ellie's immunity to the fungus potentially holds the key to a cure. Check out the handy guide staff writer Tracy Brown, our trusty 'The Last of Us' expert, assembled to help get you up to speed. READ MORE >> 'The Last of Us' Season 2 is arriving soon. Here's a Season 1 recap A weekly chat with actors, writers, directors and more about what they're working on — and what they're watching Like mother, like daughter? It's an all too valid observation with this week's Season 3 finale of 'Yellowjackets' including a stunning revelation about Callie, the moody teenage daughter of Shauna (Melanie Lynskey) played by Sarah Desjardins. No spoilers here. Let's just say Callie's curiosity about her mother's time in the wildnerness has caught up with her. In this week's Guest Spot, Desjardins discussed her character's state of mind, what she's watching and more. — Matt Brennan and Yvonne Villarreal One of the key developments this season is the bond Callie forms with Lottie before her death. At one point, Lottie asks her how she would describe herself without embarrassment, shame or fear, and she deflects. What was the answer going through her head that she wasn't ready to speak yet? I personally think that Callie is feeling lost, confused and scared. Part of that fear is coming from this inner knowing she has that she is a very powerful person. She doesn't know what to do. She doesn't know what that means. I think she's scared of what she's capable of. I think Callie is also lonely. She wants love. She wants to be seen and heard. She knows she is very worthy of both those things, but like anyone would in her environment, she doubts herself. I love her very much. 'Yellowjackets' has become renowned for casting high-profile actors as the adult versions of the Yellowjackets, as well as recurring and guest stars. Who would you be most excited to see join for a Season 4 and why? Can Sarah Snook join us? PLEASE. Need I explain why? She is a powerhouse and endlessly captivating. What have you watched recently that you're recommending to everyone you know? 'The Studio' [AppleTV+]. I am such a sucker for projects about our industry but, also, it is just so incredible. I love the way it's shot, the performances; it's such a fun, hilarious ride every episode. What's your go-to 'comfort watch,' the film or TV show you return to again and again? TV shows I am always going between [are] 'Gilmore Girls' [Netflix], 'The Office' [Peacock] and 'Friends' [Max]. The two films that come to mind are 'Crazy, Stupid, Love' [VOD] and 'It's Complicated' [Starz, VOD]. Truly can't count how many times I've seen either.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Yahoo
A mass hunger strike transformed solitary confinement in California prisons. This documentary captures the fight
In 2013, nearly 4,000 California inmates in long-term solitary confinement (for decades, in some cases) went on what would become a months-long hunger strike. The collective action was designed to get the attention of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and protest the conditions of those in extended solitary confinement. At the negotiating table, the corrections department was met by a united front of inmates who, understanding the injustice of their dire circumstances, decided they would try to change the very policies that had left them 'buried' in concrete cells. 'The Strike,' which premiered on PBS' 'Independent Lens' on Monday and is currently available on the PBS app and PBS' YouTube channel, chronicles that feat of activist organizing. In the hands of filmmakers JoeBill Muñoz and Lucas Guilkey, the documentary shines a spotlight on the men who helped organize and mobilize their fellow inmates. But it is also a living record of the recent history of the carceral system in the U.S. in general and in California in particular. 'We wanted to trace the arc of the rise of mass incarceration on a deeply personal, intimate level,' said Guilkey. But also, this is not an individual story. It's a story of collective solidarity. And it's a story of organizing across racial lines.' As title cards inform viewers at the start of the film, Pelican Bay State Prison's Security Housing Unit once held hundreds of inmates for more than a decade. Now, it's nearly empty. The film tells the story of how the 2013 hunger strike helped make that happen. Former inmates such as Jack L. Morris (a Chicano man who served 40 years in prison, with more than 30 spent in solitary confinement) and Michael Saavedra (who served close to 20 years, many of them in solitary) share their painful experiences on camera. Through them, 'The Strike' offers unprecedented insight into what led these California inmates to organize the largest prison hunger strike in U.S. history. With limited access to their families, the outside world and even one another, Morris, Saavedra and other Pelican Bay inmates found increasingly creative ways to connect with those they couldn't see face to face. Those included notes in library books and conversations had over toilets and vents. 'We all actively, collectively, did what we did,' Morris says. 'But in reality, we were siloed from others. We didn't know what was taking place. I just had to believe that what I was doing, others were doing. And seeing it on the film, it inspired me. But it disappointed me, too. Because I couldn't do as much as I saw many others do.' For his wife, Dolores Canales, co-founder of the California Families Against Solitary Confinement, the film offers a chance to address the rhetoric pushing for solitary confinement in the first place. 'The narrative was: These are the worst of the worst,' she says. ''We are keeping you safe. We're keeping the guards safe. Everybody's safe because we're doing this.' But I feel this film contradicts that narrative and reaches the very depth of humanity.' Morris and Saavedra share how dehumanizing it felt to hear the rhetoric while imprisoned. They were among the men (many of them quite young when they first entered the carceral system) branded as violent gang members. That was often enough to strip them of the scant freedoms they were afforded in prison, decisions that were made not by judges but by corrections administrators, and that were all too difficult to undo. 'I hope that the film will help the general audience — the people outside — to really see that people can change and grow,' Saavedra, who has been pursuing a law degree since his release, says. 'I'm hoping it gives audiences a different outlook upon us. And not just us people. But then also looking deeper at the system. This is what your system does. This is what the California Department of Corrections does to people.' The Pelican Bay State Prison, which opened in 1989, served as a limit case for the practice of solitary confinement. As the documentary outlines, the building of that 'state-of-the-art" penitentiary in the middle of the redwood forest in the northernmost part of California helped dehumanize those housed within its walls. They were kept away from their loved ones, but also from public scrutiny. 'This is mostly men — Latino, Chicano, men from Los Angeles, mostly — who are on the Oregon border in this windowless, concrete fortress cell, in this massive institution designed to hold over a thousand people in solitary confinement,' Guilkey explains. Such context makes the hunger strike all the more remarkable. And it's what made producing 'The Strike' so challenging in the first place. 'It's a protest that happens inside the most high-security prison you can imagine,' Muñoz says. 'How do you visually piece this together? How do you tell this story?' Mostly, it required getting recently released inmates such as Saavedra and Morris to share their experiences, and then piecing their stories together with archival footage for historical context. But viewers of 'The Strike' also get to witness a tense meeting between the corrections department and the coalition of leaders organizing the hunger strike. Guilkey and Muñoz wouldn't disclose how they got that secretly-shot footage, but it's an explosive moment when those inmates present their requests calmly. They explain they have little to lose: What else would the corrections department do? 'When we think of the prison system, we usually think of power belonging to the administrators,' Muñoz adds. 'To the wardens. To the folks who decide the policies. To the jailers. And what was extraordinary about these protests, but especially this footage, was that it was all flipped on its head. Now, this collection of incarcerated guys have come together and represented a collective of power. The whole system was on its head.' The documentary may be squarely centered on the fight to abolish solitary confinement as it exists and is enforced right now. But for its filmmakers, 'The Strike' offers a broader road map for how to face the current political landscape. 'This is multiracial, working-class, collective solidarity,' as Guilkey puts it. 'This is social movement organizing and what it takes to do collective direct action to effect material change in your lives. This shows how to fight authoritarian power.' And as 'The Strike' shows, that takes work; one person at a time. 'Activism is not necessarily having a thousand people with you immediately,' Morris says, summing up the film's message. 'It's taking the steps by yourself and bringing people as you move along.' Get our Latinx Files newsletter for stories that capture the complexity of our communities. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Los Angeles Times
06-02-2025
- Los Angeles Times
A mass hunger strike transformed solitary confinement in California prisons. This documentary captures the fight
In 2013, nearly 4,000 California inmates in long-term solitary confinement (for decades, in some cases) went on what would become a months-long hunger strike. The collective action was designed to get the attention of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and protest the conditions of those in extended solitary confinement. At the negotiating table, the corrections department was met by a united front of inmates who, understanding the injustice of their dire circumstances, decided they would try to change the very policies that had left them 'buried' in concrete cells. 'The Strike,' which premiered on PBS' 'Independent Lens' on Monday and is currently available on the PBS app and PBS' YouTube channel, chronicles that feat of activist organizing. In the hands of filmmakers JoeBill Muñoz and Lucas Guilkey, the documentary shines a spotlight on the men who helped organize and mobilize their fellow inmates. But it is also a living record of the recent history of the carceral system in the U.S. in general and in California in particular. 'We wanted to trace the arc of the rise of mass incarceration on a deeply personal, intimate level,' said Guilkey. But also, this is not an individual story. It's a story of collective solidarity. And it's a story of organizing across racial lines.' As title cards inform viewers at the start of the film, Pelican Bay State Prison's Security Housing Unit once held hundreds of inmates for more than a decade. Now, it's nearly empty. The film tells the story of how the 2013 hunger strike helped make that happen. Former inmates such as Jack L. Morris (a Chicano man who served 40 years in prison, with more than 30 spent in solitary confinement) and Michael Saavedra (who served close to 20 years, many of them in solitary) share their painful experiences on camera. Through them, 'The Strike' offers unprecedented insight into what led these California inmates to organize the largest prison hunger strike in U.S. history. With limited access to their families, the outside world and even one another, Morris, Saavedra and other Pelican Bay inmates found increasingly creative ways to connect with those they couldn't see face to face. Those included notes in library books and conversations had over toilets and vents. 'We all actively, collectively, did what we did,' Morris says. 'But in reality, we were siloed from others. We didn't know what was taking place. I just had to believe that what I was doing, others were doing. And seeing it on the film, it inspired me. But it disappointed me, too. Because I couldn't do as much as I saw many others do.' For his wife, Dolores Canales, co-founder of the California Families Against Solitary Confinement, the film offers a chance to address the rhetoric pushing for solitary confinement in the first place. 'The narrative was: These are the worst of the worst,' she says. ''We are keeping you safe. We're keeping the guards safe. Everybody's safe because we're doing this.' But I feel this film contradicts that narrative and reaches the very depth of humanity.' Morris and Saavedra share how dehumanizing it felt to hear the rhetoric while imprisoned. They were among the men (many of them quite young when they first entered the carceral system) branded as violent gang members. That was often enough to strip them of the scant freedoms they were afforded in prison, decisions that were made not by judges but by corrections administrators, and that were all too difficult to undo. 'I hope that the film will help the general audience — the people outside — to really see that people can change and grow,' Saavedra, who has been pursuing a law degree since his release, says. 'I'm hoping it gives audiences a different outlook upon us. And not just us people. But then also looking deeper at the system. This is what your system does. This is what the California Department of Corrections does to people.' The Pelican Bay State Prison, which opened in 1989, served as a limit case for the practice of solitary confinement. As the documentary outlines, the building of that 'state-of-the-art' penitentiary in the middle of the redwood forest in the northernmost part of California helped dehumanize those housed within its walls. They were kept away from their loved ones, but also from public scrutiny. 'This is mostly men — Latino, Chicano, men from Los Angeles, mostly — who are on the Oregon border in this windowless, concrete fortress cell, in this massive institution designed to hold over a thousand people in solitary confinement,' Guilkey explains. Such context makes the hunger strike all the more remarkable. And it's what made producing 'The Strike' so challenging in the first place. 'It's a protest that happens inside the most high-security prison you can imagine,' Muñoz says. 'How do you visually piece this together? How do you tell this story?' Mostly, it required getting recently released inmates such as Saavedra and Morris to share their experiences, and then piecing their stories together with archival footage for historical context. But viewers of 'The Strike' also get to witness a tense meeting between the corrections department and the coalition of leaders organizing the hunger strike. Guilkey and Muñoz wouldn't disclose how they got that secretly-shot footage, but it's an explosive moment when those inmates present their requests calmly. They explain they have little to lose: What else would the corrections department do? 'When we think of the prison system, we usually think of power belonging to the administrators,' Muñoz adds. 'To the wardens. To the folks who decide the policies. To the jailers. And what was extraordinary about these protests, but especially this footage, was that it was all flipped on its head. Now, this collection of incarcerated guys have come together and represented a collective of power. The whole system was on its head.' The documentary may be squarely centered on the fight to abolish solitary confinement as it exists and is enforced right now. But for its filmmakers, 'The Strike' offers a broader road map for how to face the current political landscape. 'This is multiracial, working-class, collective solidarity,' as Guilkey puts it. 'This is social movement organizing and what it takes to do collective direct action to effect material change in your lives. This shows how to fight authoritarian power.' And as 'The Strike' shows, that takes work; one person at a time. 'Activism is not necessarily having a thousand people with you immediately,' Morris says, summing up the film's message. 'It's taking the steps by yourself and bringing people as you move along.'
