What I Want
What I Want My Words to Do to You

What I Want My Words to Do to You / Madeleine Gavin, Judith Katz, Gary Sunshine / USA / 2003 / 79 min / English

An unprecedented look into the minds and hearts of the women inmates of New York’s Bedford Hills Correctional Facility. The film goes inside a writing workshop led by playwright and activist Eve Ensler, consisting of 15 women, most of whom were convicted of murder. As the film progresses, the writing becomes a process of discovery and self-reflection. The inmates face painful truths about the choices that irrevocably changed the course of their lives. The filmmakers use the exercises and the highly charged discussions to reveal how the women grapple with their own guilt. The film culminates in an emotionally charged prison performance of the women’s writing by acclaimed actors Mary Alice, Glenn Close, Hazelle Goodman, Rosie Perez and Marisa Tomei.

producer | Judith Katz
screenplay | Gary Sunshine
camera | Dyanna Taylor, Paul Gibson
editor | Madeleine Gavin
sound | Ben Posnack, Peter Miller, Alexandra Baltarzuk, B. Rappa, Jason Munoz
music | Bill Coleman