I do not think so. . However, he re-entered prison after being tried as an adult for two robberies. It hit home because I grew up with a lot of Juan:I find screenwriting and filmmaking very interesting, [e]specially for the power you can have of telling a story and raising awareness about certain topics. Ben Lear makes his directorial debut with "They Call Us Monsters," a searing but sensitive documentary following the experiences of juvenile offenders through the justice system.His father, Norman, used the form of the sitcom to hold a mirror up to American culture, but Ben takes a more direct approach with his non-fiction work, and the intuitive observation displayed in this film shows . I havent done drugs in three years [as] opposed to getting high every day. A part of PBS, America's Home for Documentaries, We thought viewers of Ben Lears They Call Us Monsters may be interested in hearing from the young men featured in the film. 1 Hour 21 Minutes. Three kids facing life in prison. This reality recalls a moment from the beginning of the film when the boys are taking Cowan on a tour of the facilities at Sylmar, clean but stark if decorated with names of NFL teams. Ya disponible en todas las plataformas digitales junto, as de esta manera fue llevado ala justicia y ser presentado ante los tribunales con el fin de que pague con crcel todos los crmenes cometidos/los angelitos que no hacen nada. The focus of InsideOUT is usually poetry and prose (alumni participate in group gatherings called Writing Circles, where young people come together to share their work and talk). [1] The teenagers participate in a screenwriting class at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in Los Angeles, California with producer Gabriel Cowan. You can see them hugging, you can see they felt a lot of success together, they went through a real experience together.. I was filled with conflicting emotions throughout. The film follows three juvenile offenders: Juan Gamez, Antonio Hernandez and Jarad Nava who signed up for a screenwriting class . , when a referendum gave prosecutors the power to try teens as adults for certain serious crimes. I cant think of anything specific other than Im grateful so many people have embrace[d] our story and joined the prison reform movement (one way or the other). Stay in touch. In California, the parole bill featured in Monsters ultimately passed in 2013. The teenage girl Jarad shot is paralyzed and in a wheelchair. Available on iTunes Legislators debate legislation that allows for adult charges for juvenile offenders. To their victims, they're monsters. Next, Jarad sings a lyric from Hotel California that again captures the No Exit quality of the whole story: You can check out any time you like, but you can never leave.. Download a copy of Juan Gamezs complete handwritten letter. He wrote that he is grateful so many people have embrace[d] our story and join the prison reform movement. While in prison, he is going to college fulltime and making strong grades. Anyone can read what you share. But by the end of the 10 weeks, Cowan says, they were all friends. The juvenile justice system was created to rehabilitate, not to be punitive but it became a punitive system where the kids are getting punished for their trauma.. Are you allowed to watch anything? In California, juveniles between the ages of 14 and 17 can be tried as adults and receive sentences longer than their natural life expectancy. HD. The remark encapsulated the feeling I was left with after observing the film. Im guessing people probably think were still in the same mindset, and doing the same stuff. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. To their critics, they're monsters. Change is possible but forgiveness is needed.. Jarad, who will be eligible for parole in 2037, wrote in a letter to PBS that hes chosento leave the criminal lifestyle in my past and serve my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Juan is eligible for parole in 2027. The teacher, Gabriel Cowan (also a producer of the film), leads a workshop at Barry J. Nidorf Juvenile Hall in the Sylmar neighborhood of Los Angeles. As any parent, teacher or person who has worked with teens will tell you, teenagers are impulsive. The first individual we come across is Antonio, who was arrested at the age of 14-years-old. To their victims, they're monsters. They found him along the 4000 block of Green Tree Drive Wednesday and took him into custody. Lear's documentary follows three boys living in such a compound who signed up for a screenwriting class: Antonio Hernandez, Jarad Nava, and Juan Gamez. Juan says, I really was a monster, and the film includes surveillance video of the killing that put him behind bars. Jarad makes a joke of it, but Antonio says, Trust, fear of vulnerability, fear of public speaking and fear of being alone. Juan says, Fear of death, loneliness, darkness and love., The love story is the heart of the film, Lear says. Thats why you need programs like InsideOUT and college., In the fifth writing class, Cowan introduces the topic of character motivation, telling the kids that conflict and fear are essential in driving plot. If they weren’t waiting for a trial for a crime they committed, they appear to be typical American Read more. Juan said he was in love with a girl when he was 10, but was too scared to tell her. Arrested at 16, Jarad faces 200 years-to-life for four attempted murders; Juan, also arrested at 16, faces 90-to-life for first-degree murder; Antonio was arrested at 14 and faces 90-to-life for two attempted murders.[4]. As prison reform continues to be a hot topic of conversation, Ben Lears They Call Us Monsters hopes to give voice to those inside the Compound. Categories Trending Tags They Call Us Monsters Leave a comment. Documentary 2017 1 hr 21 min iTunes. These are young men who will be tried as adults for violent crimes and face decades, if not hundreds of years in adult jails. The documentary features three juvenile offenders: Juan Gamez, Antonio Hernandez, and Jarad Nava. (https://jjie.org/2017/02/08/meet-the-monsters-documentary-looks-at-california-juvenile-debate/). Follow her on Twitter at @EmilyBeJordan. Our independent journalism on the juvenile justice system takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. Antonio, Juan and Jarad are enrolled in a 20-week screenwriting course taught by Gabe Cowan, and through clips of their classes and the fictional scenarios they develop, "They Call Us. He went as research for a script, expecting to meet the kind of scary characters hed seen in the movies but instead, he found a classroom full of kids., When a kid arrives there, a lot of his baggage is temporarily stripped away, Lear said. Its protagonist, an amalgam of Jarad, Antonio and Juan, is played by a small and fresh-faced boy, a perfect casting choice that conveys the boys actual youth, that is, if it hadnt been cut short by gang violence, poverty, and an unjust system. Sorry your mother did what she did to you, it seems you are better off, Im sure it still hurts. If I learned one thing about myself Id say it is that the camera loves me. With powerful subject matter and masterful conceptualization, the film was captivating, each scene leaving me eager to find out how the story and those featured in it would develop. Grappling with tough questions about what it means to convict a young teenager to a lifetime in prison without diminishing or excusing the violent crimes which these kids are accused of, They. come up for parole in 20-25 years, instead of the 80 or 90 years he would have had with a 160-year sentence. In what is then the pinnacle moment of the documentary, Juan watches from the sidelines as actors brought in by Cowan enact a scene from his own life as he wishes it had actually transpired. Year. She weeps as she talks about the harrowing moment in which she thought she was going to die. Lear originally visited the prison wanting to enrich a screenplay he was working on but once he saw the world of the young boys in the Compound, he knew he had a worthwhile doc in his hands. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Prior to his imprisonment, Antonio was an honor roll student and he seemed like the perfect student up until his arrest. Antonio, Jarad and Juan are the subjects of the documentary "They Call Us Monsters," BMP Films The issue of juveniles tried as adults in our criminal justice system is a difficult one, and the . Download a copy of Jarad Navas complete handwritten letter. Cowan, who also happens to be one of the films producers, is the first person to teach a screenwriting class with InsideOUT Writers, a non-profit organization whose mission is both to use creative writing as a catalyst for personal transformation and to reduce the juvenile recidivism rate by providing services for formerly incarcerated youth. They Call Us Monsters - Where to Watch and Stream They Call Us Monsters Overview Cast Meet Juan, Jarad, and Antonio, all in their teens, all facing decades in prison. Buy $12.99. Juvenile Justice Information Exchange University of Redlands Emergency Alert System, Alert Received: . 1.7K Likes, 32 Comments. Summary. The Center publishes multiple projects including Youth Today, JJIE, Fresh Take Georgia and Bokeh Focus. 17.9K Likes, 65 Comments. To others, they're monsters. Stars: Nora Kirkpatrick, Nate Corddry, Ernesto Hernndez, Allegra Acosta, Joel Anderson, Richard Bloom, Steven Fernandez, Ernesto Hernandez, Scott Budnick, Mike Camacho, Antonia Casas R, Yesenia Castro, Gabriel Cowan, Darrell J Edwards Jr, Darrell J Edwards Sr, Juan Gamez, Kath Hello. 5 Heartbreaking Facts From They Call Us Monsters Doc on Latino Teens Facing Life in Jail. The miscreants alluded to in the title of the documentary "They Call Us Monsters" are a trio of teenage boys, incarcerated in a California juvenile detention facility for charges ranging. Over the course of the two years that Lear (son of TV writer and producer Norman Lear) spent filming They Call Us Monsters, SB 260, the juvenile parole bill, went into effect in California. Juan, Jarad and Antonio, all young teens, face decades in prison. Powerful new documentary 'They Call Us Monsters' follows three teen boys who face life sentences for their violent crimes. Emily Jordan is a YA writer living in New York City. Also, people who have done enough time in prison age out of violent crime in their thirties and forties. While in the courthouse representing himself for the hearing about her murder, he asked the judge if he could use the law . You cant punish trauma out of a child, you have to love it out of them, he says. I saw the kids facing life and it broke my heart and changed my life, Budnick tells me over the phone. For more information, visit: were being prosecuted in adult courts every year, according to the Campaign for Youth Justice, which opposes the practice. His statement, I was a monster, I really was, is the crux of the film: he joined a gang before his thirteenth birthday to emulate his brother. It establishes a parole process with different criteria.. PBS Independent Lens airs the film on Monday, May 22. The film was written in an InsideOUT Writers class taught by Gabriel Cowan which is featured in the documentary THEY CALL US MONSTERS directed by Ben Lear. Copyright 2023 Salon.com, LLC. To their victims, theyre monsters. Sign up for our daily newsletter. 2023 Independent Television Service (ITVS). [2][3], The documentary follows three young juvenile offenders who signed up for a screenwriting class with producer Gabriel Cowan as they await their respective trials in Los Angeles County. Let me clarify, I dont think juveniles should just be let free or given a slap on the wrist. And in 2016, state voters approved a ballot measure that takes the decision on whether a teen should stand trial as an adult away from prosecutors and puts it in the hands of a juvenile court judge. Our organization retains full authority over editorial content to protect the best journalistic and business interests of our organization. They are lively, tattooed gangbanger street-wise kids, who show no remorse for their crimes. Was there anything that tripped you out or that you learned about yourself after watching the movie? Mothers staying home to care for their children. Maybe that journey toward remorse and responsibility is different for everyone. Upload your text file or copy the materials to the field. Antonio has since re-offended. Cast and crew Ben Lear Director Jarad Nava Juan Gamez Antonio Hernandez Darrell Edwards Additional information Directors Ben Lear Studio The Orchard Subtitles English (CC) Released year 2017 Duration 1 h 21 min Genres Documentary Foreign/Independent Size 4.67 GB (1080p HD) 2.18 GB (720p HD) 1.65 GB (SD) , Scott Budnick (The Hangover) who executive produced the They Call Us Monsters as a labor of love. I used laughter as a mask to shield myself and others [from] my reality. It wasnt a direct line, it was a process that had zigzaggy lines. He attended the Compound as part of InsideOUT Writers, an organization that uses creative writing programs as a way to aid in the rehabilitation of prison inmates. To their victims, theyre monsters. about brain development in teenagers that found the part of the brain that regulates judgment, decision-making and impulse control doesnt fully form until a person is in their 20s. The prisoners are not made out to be innocent victims of the prison system; it was made clear that they committed serious crimes and are dealing with the repercussions. The girl in Los turns out to be Abby, the love of Juans life whom he let get away. Learhad been visiting "The Compound," a high-security facility where Los Angeles houses its most violent juvenile criminals. Toward the end of "They Call Us Monsters," Antonio has been released. To pass the time, they sign up for a screenwriting class and collaborate on a short film about their lives, including Juan's unrequited love for his childhood friend, Abigail. , would allow juveniles to become eligible for parole earlier in their sentencing, after serving at least 15 years. When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted. The documentary "They Call Us Monsters" explored the life of three juvenile offenders, i.e. They Call Us Monsters goes behind the walls of the Compound, a high-security facility where Los Angeles houses its most violent juvenile criminals. They Call Us Monsters. 2017. being generous here 7 million pit bulls and Rottweilers and other dangerous breeds. Instead of facing my life I numbed myself to it and behaved immaturely.. What other stories would you like to tell in film or writing? The problem could be stopped before it reaches this how does a teen get a gun is never questioned. CC. They Call Us Monsters Official Trailer 1 (2016) - Documentary. 38 deaths from fire arms not ruled homicide. That inspired him to make the documentary, which uses a montage of news reports to illustrate the late 20th century spike in juvenile crime and the punitive response that followed a broad expansion in the offenses and ages for which a teen could stand trial as an adult. To the system, theyre adults. Who Creates the Dragons Brave Knights must Slay? These are perfect examples of the way the justice system has decided to treat young men who commit violent crimes as adults. All rights reserved. TALKING" while everyone blathers on regardless. HD. Doing the numbers it appears that a child age 0-9 is 15x more likely to be killed by an aggressive dog breed than a firearm (excluding homicides). A part of PBS, America's Home for Documentaries. 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