From March to December of 2013, I facilitated workshops once a week with inmates in the Women’s Prison of Talca, Chile. We shared stories about the different realities each of them had experienced, their hopes and sorrows, faults and strengths. We selected stop motion animation as the most effective and inclusive technique for recording the diverse perspectives and messages that all the participants wanted to express. We created a series of ‘Parallel Accounts’ videos, composed from the voices and visions of incarcerated women, handmade by them, in their own words, so that others could gain a glimpse into their world. Of the more than twenty individuals who participated, many have now been released, while others still have years left to serve; despite the difficult circumstances they face, these brave women are committed to being mothers, daughters and sisters above all.
Sarah Ashford Hart 