SING SING
Section: Special Presentations
Director: Greg Kwedar
Writers: Clint Bentley, Greg Kwedar
Logline: A theatre troupe finds escape from the realities of incarceration through the creativity of putting on a play in this film based on a real-life rehabilitation programme and featuring a cast that includes formerly incarcerated actors.
Distributor: Elevation Pictures
Premiere Date: Sept 10, 2023
Panelists: Colman Domingo, Greg Kwedar, Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin, Paul Raci
Key Quotes: “The story is really about this group of people who found a community through the arts, on the stage, and we told it in a community way with the people who really lived it, alongside some of our world’s greatest actors who shared the same spirit and heart.” – Greg Kwedar
“The first thing they sent me was this Esquire article about this program [Rehabilitation Through the Arts] at Sing Sing, and I thought it was fascinating… The first time we [gestures to Maclin] were on a Zoom, we were just playing. It’s like we’re going to create something together, sort of like the way you do on the playground, and I think we have an idea about something and as long as we put all of our hearts, and minds and energy towards it, we can create something new and impactful.” – Colman Domingo
“The message that we’re really trying to get out is that there’s human people inside of this prison… and I think people who see this will see that there’s a more human quality to individuals who you might cast off… There’s a man in there and you can wake him up, and art is the perfect tool to do it.” – Clarence “Divine Eye” Maclin
“On more than three separate occasions, one of the men that actually lived the experience in prison told me, ‘You know, if I had just met this acting teacher or this program before I did what I did to end up in Sing Sing, I wouldn’t be here.’ And I know that’s the truth, it’s the truth about my life because I met an acting teacher who opened me up. So, it’s a beautiful story and this program changes lives.” – Paul Raci
