Applications are now open for FILM 174 A and B, an intensive two-quarter advanced workshop in Documentary making. Selected Film and Digital Media undergraduate students will work in small teams as documentarians, and social justice activists, to create short films, websites, and social media campaigns that make the case for the innocence of a wrongfully convicted person currently languishing in prison. Students leave campus and travel to visit their “client” as they reinvestigate the crime and conviction. Their task is to create films and social media campaigns representing the injustices, and human stories involved in each case.
The Making an Exoneree course takes on difficult cases overlooked by innocence projects. These cases are often decades old without DNA evidence or available appeals. The ultimate goal of the course is to breathe new life into the search for justice in these cases and help bring innocent people home from prison.
The class will meet in person on Fridays from 9:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. throughout the winter and spring of 2025. Students selected to participate must commit to enrolling in both quarters and must be available to travel with their teams to visit their ‘client’ and research their case. Travel expenses will be covered. Student teams will premiere their films at a public event at the end of the spring quarter.
The application form is available HERE.
Prioritized application review for applications submitted by Wednesday, November 13th at 11:59 pm. The final deadline for applications will be November 22nd at 11:59 pm. Accepted students will be notified no later than November 27th.
Priority will be given to students with a solid academic and practical background in film and digital media making, a passion for justice, and an understanding of injustice in the criminal legal system. System-impacted students are especially encouraged to apply. This course provides two credits toward the Visualizing Abolition Studies Certificate Program (VAST).
The “Making an Exoneree” course originated in 2018 at Georgetown University with Professor Marc Howard and his childhood friend, Adjunct Professor Marty Tankleff, who was himself wrongfully convicted and incarcerated for almost 18 years before being exonerated. Six individuals who shared their stories with “Making an Exoneree” have been exonerated or released. In 2022, Film and Digital Media Professor Sharon Daniel began a partnership with Professors Howard and Tankleff to allow UCSC students to participate in this effort.
Unforgettable Lies: Framing Jamie Snow, one of the films made by UCSC students in 2023, won the Chancellor’s Award in 2024.
If you have questions please contact Professor Daniel at sdaniel (at) ucsc (dot) edu