Prison Town, USA

A film by Po Kutchins and Katie Galloway

In America, there are more people per capita in prison than any place in the world and the sentences are longer than else where. To accommodate this, a new prison was opened every fifteen days in the 1990's in rural America. Prison Town, USA tells the story of a small California town that tried to revive its lagging economy by building a prison -- with unanticipated consequences.

This penetrating documentary shows the psychological and economic impact on a community where the vast majority of the labor force works within the confines of the penal institution. The film shows us families living and working in the modern-day prison town of Susanville. Guards learn to be tough to protect themselves from violent criminals. These defenses often do not melt when they re-enter their homes , especially as there is a reluctance to talk about the work day. Wives and children describe the personality changes that affects family life.

Among those portrayed are: a laid-off mill worker turned guard; a tenacious dairy owner fighting to retain his contract with the prison; a man on parole who cannot find a job to support his family; local businessmen who were given false hopes; and prison-boosting politicians. The film illuminates the impact of America's prison building frenzy and incarceration boom on hundreds of rural communities that once invited them in.

74 min. Video or DVD. Sale $295. Video rental $85.

Los Angeles Film Festival, 2007
Ashland Independent Film Festival, 2007

"This is documentary making at its best…" San Francisco Chronicle
"…a smartly constructed documentary…" New York Times