Belly of the Beast (2020)

Directed by

Erika Cohn

Genre

documentary film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 22m

Rating

7.2 of 10 from 5 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary follows an inmate and her lawyer as they expose illegal sterilization practices inside California women's prisons. They uncover a pattern of poor healthcare, sexual abuse, and coercive procedures targeting women of color.

investigativeharrowingsoberingurgentmethodicalunflinchingdisturbingrevelatory

What happens

Belly of the Beast is a 2020 documentary film by Erika Cohn about the illegal sterilization practices in the Central California Women’s Facility and other female penitentiaries. Made over a period of seven years, the 82-minute movie documents the fight of one inmate (Kelli Dillon) and her lawyer against the Department of Corrections. Their investigations inside prison, with assistance from outside allies, uncover statewide criminal practices ranging from poor healthcare, sexual abuse and assault, coercive sterilizations, and the targeting of women of color. The film was supported by the Tribeca Film Institute through the Gucci Tribeca Documentary Fund (2015), the TFI Network (2017), and the TFI Pond5 Program (Spring 2019). 20% of proceeds from the film went to support the Women and Justice Project. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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