Concrete, Steel, & Paint

Cindy Burstein and Tony Heriza's film Concrete, Steel and Paint, follows our Healing Walls project at the State Correctional Institution (SCI) at Graterford. The film, originally titled Brushes with Life, explores the impact of combining collaborative mural-making with elements of restorative justice. By documenting several years of our projects involving prisoner artists, crime victims, adjudicated youth, and community volunteers, the film shows the evolution of our efforts in this area and explores both the promise and the manifold challenges of this important work. Through the voices and stories of a group of key participants—inmates, victims of crime, engaged community members, and Mural Arts staff—the film raises issues about current approaches to crime, incarceration, and rehabilitation and explores the role that community arts can play in promoting justice and reconciliation.

This weekend Foreverfamily, inc. viewed Conrecete, Steel, & Paint along with WonderRoot at the Clarkston Community Center on September 11, 2011. This is an amazing film and project that raising important question about the healing process the prisoners, victims of crimes, and the families of prisoners.