Comedy is a tough business. Really tough. But it’s probably not as tough as doing it behind bars. A new comedy documentary (narrated by Ice-T!) on just that subject is in production. Inmates With Talent is “a very funny reality comedy about a wild talent contest in a real working prison with over 2,000 inmates. Skinheads and drug dealers share the stage doing stand up – all using the stage as a way to build confidence for a second chance at life. These guys are trying to turn their lives around and they’re doing it through comedy.”
Top LA comedians Steve Wilson, who’s been seen on Comedy Central, and Edwin San Juan (Showtime’s Slanted Comedy) perform alongside crazy funny inmates turned comics. They stress on their website that the project is no about glamorizing prison. “Our approach, which has demonstrated positive effects on inmate behavior, uses comedy… to turn lives around. It has a purpose and it is generating results. Moreover, we are only working with inmates who will one day be released from prison (and back in our neighborhoods). We want to improve their mental state. Then they will have a better chance to acclimate to society and be law-abiding once they’re living on our streets.”
The project is still in the works, and you can help make it a reality! Check it out their Kickstarter and support this worthwhile comedy project!
Check out the official trailer:
[su_youtube url=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq7wXNrXq-Y” width=”460″ height=”300″]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq7wXNrXq-Y[/su_youtube]
About the film…
“Inmates with Talent” (also known as “IWT”), featuring Ice-T, is a bold reality/comedy movie about a wild talent contest in a prison with over 2,000 inmates. Steve Wilson and Edwin San Juan were fortunate enough to gain unprecedented access to Indiana’s Putnamville Correctional Facility to clown around with the convicts—at times pushing the envelope in a Borat kind of way—but, in the process, helping turn their lives around. “We organize a talent contest that not only showcases many of the inmates’ hidden talents but also unites the entire prison population. To be honest, we don’t really know how we pulled this ‘first-of-its-kind’ off, but somehow we did.”
Chad Jackson, an inmate at Putnamville perhaps says it best: “The contest had a profound effect upon my perception. Johnny’s visit reminded me of my worth as a creation of God, diminishing the despair that I may never be able to overcome my past and live a pro-social life, the desire of most inmates. His humanity is desperately needed in our prison systems. Thanks, Johnny, for remembering that punishment without restoration is often more dangerous than no punishment at all.”
An inmate who participated, Lorenzo Reid shared, “I think ‘Inmates With Talent’ is needed all around the country. This will inspire these guys to do something other than go out and rob someone. And this show that Johnny, Joel and the fellas brought here… it brought a lot of hope and it inspired me to really put my craft to work.”
Doug Garrison, Chief Communications Officer, Indiana Department of Correction, commented, “Part of the reason why I thought this was an important project was to bring something inside a prison that the offenders don’t see every day, that might help them get along better. If they can laugh together, then they might get along better. In terms of the movie, I screened a rough cut recently and really enjoyed it. It’s very funny yet dramatic at times and also has a great inspirational message. I hope audiences nationwide enjoy it as well.”
Visit http://inmateswithtalent.com for more info!