Documenting Justice UA Student Film ‘Storybook’ Selected for Prestigious Ethics Symposium

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – “Storybook,” a documentary film created by University of Alabama students about a reading program for incarcerated mothers and their children, has been selected for inclusion in the 2009 Undergraduate Ethics Symposium at DePauw University April 9-11.

UA students Kristian Collins and Stephen Lovell created the film as part of UA’s 2007-2008 Documenting Justice course, sponsored by the Center for Ethics & Social Responsibility and the department of telecommunication and film.

“Storybook” examines the Storybook Program, a reading program run by the Montgomery-based, nonprofit organization Aid to Inmate Mothers. AIM brings children’s books and tape recorders to Julia Tutwiler Prison where incarcerated mothers are given a chance to record themselves reading the books. After the recordings are made, the books and the recordings are then sent to the inmates’ children, giving their children the opportunity to hear their mothers read to them. The documentary tells the stories of four inmates, the Storybook Program, and the challenges of parenting from prison.

Collins and Lovell are two of only 30 students from across the country whose work was selected for inclusion in the symposium, sponsored by the Janet Prindle Institute for Ethics at DePauw University. “Storybook” is the first film to be accepted to the prestigious symposium, which typically focuses on written pieces such as essays and poetry. Invited students receive an all-expense paid trip to present their work and will receive critiques and comments from their peers and visiting scholars.

Documenting Justice is a nationally unique, interdisciplinary course in documentary filmmaking that focuses on issues of justice and injustice in Alabama. Documenting Justice International, available to students who plan to study abroad, allows students to tell stories of justice from all corners of the globe.

The Center for Ethics & Social Responsibility is currently accepting applications for the 2009-2010 class of Documenting Justice; interested students should contact CESR at 205/348-6495 or www.cesr.ua.edu.