No Comprendo Documentary Film

Case Story

This is a campaign to raise money for the production of a documentary film about language and communication in the criminal justice system. A documentary that will look at the linguistic and cultural divides in the criminal justice system and the barriers to justice they cause. It asks whether a system created in centuries past, works for 21st Century multicultural Britain. On one side you have white, privileged men, privately educated in Independent fee-paying schools, and a few select women, with generations of an established presence in the UK. While, on the other hand, you have people from an ethnic minority community in Britain, educated in State schools and mostly raised by single working-class mothers, whose parents more than likely migrated to the UK - all embroiled in the criminal justice system. This presenter-led documentary will question how a standard of language that may be designed to pursue and achieve justice, in actuality does very little to support its aims for a multicultural society today. We tell stories from people caught up in the justice system, as well as professionals working within the remit of the law. Through this, we aim to explain how the language of the law and legal processes overlook the needs of certain vulnerable people. With your donations, we will be able to create a documentary that will raise awareness on hidden problems in our society and to tackle institutional racism in the criminal justice system. We understand that there are many layers in challenging racism and discrimination in Britain, and amplifying voices through documentary storytelling is an important step towards progressing to uproot it. Collectively, as a group of creative young people, we feel that our research and documentary are necessary and important, as it provides the chance to challenge one of Britain’s oldest systems. By using storytelling and educating others through this film, our intention is to engage and inspire change.

How You Can Help

We are an all-female, student crew, and given the current global situation, funding has been a struggle. We have set up this funding page to raise money for production fees, including locations, archive/stock footage and animated sequences. Which will recount a young man's experience on trial for a murder the courts ruled he did not commit himself but was guilty under joint enterprise. The young man's story and hearing from professors of law and legal professionals have formed the basis of our research, their experiences and knowledge of the existing problems shed light on what is happening in the criminal justice system, and makes them an essential part of telling the story of 'No Comprendo'.