The Farm: Angola, USA
Directed byLiz Garbus
Wilbert Rideau
Jonathan Stack
Written byBob Harris
Produced byLiz Garbus
Jonathan Stack
Narrated byBernard Addison
CinematographySam Henriques
Bob Perrin
Edited byMona Davis
Mary Manhardt
Distributed bySeventh Art Releasing
Release date
  • 1998 (1998)
Running time
88 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

The Farm: Angola, USA is a 1998 award-winning documentary set in the notorious and largest American maximum-security prison, Louisiana State Penitentiary, known as Angola. Loosely based on articles published in Life Sentences, drawn from the prison magazine, The Angolite, the film was directed and produced by Jonathan Stack and Liz Garbus. Wilbert Rideau, a life prisoner who had been editor of the magazine since 1975, also participated in direction and was credited on the film.

The film follows the lives of seven prison inmates, including Rideau, who tell their own stories of life, death, and survival in a world that few manage to leave. It was filmed during the early years of the long tenure of Warden Burl Cain (1995–2016), who is credited with reducing violence at the prison and establishing many programs to support rehabilitation of the men.

The film was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature.[1] It won the Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury prize, and both the New York and the Los Angeles Film Critics awards for Best Documentary of ‘98. After airing on A&E, it won an Emmy Award.

Years later, Stack followed up with the documentary The Farm: 10 Down (2009), exploring the lives of the survivors of this group 10 years later. One man had been executed and one had died during the making of the first film. Ten years later, three men had gained freedom; two of the first six remained in prison.

Inmates profiled
InmateYear imprisonedSentenceConvictionStatus
John A. Brown Jr.1984DeathFirst degree murder and robberyExecuted in 1997[2]
George Crawford1994LifeFirst degree murder
Wilbert Rideau1961Death (commuted to life in 1972)First degree murder and kidnappingReleased in 2005 after his conviction was reduced to manslaughter in his 4th trial
Vincent Simmons1977100 yearsTwo counts of attempted aggravated rapeReleased in 2022 after his conviction was overturned
Eugene "Bishop" Tanniehill1956LifeSecond degree murder and armed robbery[3]Released by Gov. Kathleen Blanco in August 2007
Logan "Bones" Theriot1987LifeMurder of wifeDied in prison of lung cancer in 1997[2]
Ashanti Witherspoon197275 yearsArmed robberyParoled in 1999[4]

Awards

References

  1. ↑ "NY Times: The Farm: Angola, USA". Movies & TV Dept. The New York Times. Baseline & All Movie Guide. 2009. Archived from the original on 2009-06-19. Retrieved 2008-11-22.
  2. 1 2 Ann S. Lewis, "Life and Nothing But", Austin Chronicle, 06 November 1998; accessed 22 May 2017
  3. ↑ "Ex-inmate shares story, hope". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 2016-12-04.
  4. ↑ "About Me". Ashanti Witherspoon. Retrieved 2016-12-04.


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