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A FILM ABOUT LOVE...THIEVES...MURDER...FAITH AND REDEMPTION
CURRENTLY IN PRODUCTION
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"AMERICAN PRISON: THE FORGOTTEN JEWS" is the first feature length documentary film that explores the subject of Judaism behind bars. It is a journey into the hearts, minds and souls of modern-day Jewish prisoners, the most hidden and isolated segment of our nation's Jews.
Shunned and ostracized by their own people on the outside, and a minority on the inside, these incarcerated Jews, who are convicted of committing serious crimes, have connected with their Jewish faith inside the harsh environment of our nation's prisons.
Powerful issues of guilt, faith, Jewish identity, isolation, forgiveness, transformation and redemption are being explored through these complicated human beings.
We have filmed in Sing Sing in NY, one of the world's most notorious prisons, and also on death row in Florida and inside two other maximum security prisons in Florida.
We are non-profit and need funding to finish production.
Production has been made possible by grants from the LEF Foundation and the Wolf Kahn & Emily Mason Foundation. However, the majority of our funding comes from tax deductible donations from individuals like you.
Funding is urgently needed to complete the project. The film is sponsored by the Independent Feature Project (IFP/NY),which gives the film non-profit, 501(c)(3) status. Please click on the donate page for instructions on how you can help support this ground breaking film.
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THE FORGOTTEN JEWS...
"I'm here for life. I might die here. I think about that a lot... And on Yom Kippur, I take everything and I say, "You God, you know I've made mistakes, I want to do better. I don't want to do this anymore." Charles Johnson, who is serving a life sentence without parole for burglary and assault in Tomoka Correctional Institution in Florida.
"I couldn't survive this place if I couldn't maintain my identity as a Jew." - Sing Sing prisoner, William "Manny" Tager, who is serving a 12 to 25 year sentence for manslaughter for the tragic killing of a 33 year old 'Today Show' stagehand.
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Charles Johnson, leader of the small Jewish community at Tomoka.
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Sing Sing Correctional Institute, Ossining, NY. Built in the 1820s, and located 45 minutes from Manhattan, it is New York State's largest maximum security prison. In the 1950s, Sing Sing housed 146 Jewish prisoners. Ethel & Julius Rosenberg, a Jewish husband and wife who were convicted of espionage, were executed here. Currently, there are approximately 15 Jewish prisoners out of an approximate population of 1,700.
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