Becoming Free is a short documentary film that explores the reentry experience of three young people in the District of Columbia as they seek to break the cycle of poverty, violence and incarceration through entrepreneurship. But they are always walking the “thin line” that can lead back to prison with the smallest misstep or along a new path to the future.
Title: Becoming Free | Country: USA | Language: English | Date of release: May 2018 | Runtime: 40 min | Genre: Documentary
World Premiere: BY THE PEOPLE FESTIVAL, Washington, DC, June 2018
Awards: Special Jury Award, AWARENESS FESTIVAL, Los Angeles, CA, October 2018
“When I walked through them gates and I saw my family on the other side of them gates, and me not having handcuffs and shackles on, it was like, ‘I’m free. Am I really free?’”
Sakenia Hammond
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“It’s not about your second chance, it’s about your third, forth, fifth, sixth. It’s about not giving up on you.”
“I want to be able to live next door to someone and they no know that I’ve been in prison because of the way I live and my lifestyle. I don’t want them to still be able to see the residue on me from being in prison.”
“It’s like a job just staying free.”