From Bradley Beesley
co-director of Christmas on Mars and Summercamp!
director of Okie Noodling and Fearless Freaks Featuring the Flaming Lips
“a story of gladiatorial desperation and hope, tied up with one whole lot of Oklahoman heart – Hell yeah!”
- Time Out London
“These are vivid, flawed, even introspective characters. And they’re classic American strivers. With rodeo, but not just that, they hope to go beyond where they have been.”
- New York Times
Sweethearts of the Prison Rodeo goes behind prison walls to follow convict cowgirls on their journey to the 2007 Oklahoma State Penitentiary Rodeo. In 2006, female inmates were allowed to participate for the first time.
In a state with the highest female incarceration rate in the country, these women share common experiences such as broken homes, drug abuse and alienation from their children. From 1940 – 2008, the Oklahoma State Penitentiary held an annual ‘Prison Rodeo’. Part Wild West show and part coliseum-esque spectacle, it was one of the last of its kind – a relic of the American penal system. Prisoners compete on wild-broncs and bucking bulls, risking life-long injuries. For inmates like Danny Liles, a 14-year veteran of the rodeo, the chance to battle livestock offers a brief respite from prison life. Within this strange arena the prisoners become the heroes while the public and guards applaud.
Screened in 20+ cities
