

Director Benjamin Lear spoke to PBS about his inspiration for his film THEY CALL US MONSTERS, which follows a group of young men in a high-security juvenile detention facility.
“Four years ago I sat in on a writing class in a juvenile hall for kids being tried as adults. At the time, I had never met anyone incarcerated, in a gang, or facing a murder charge. These kids checked off all three. And yet, they were kind and inquisitive, thoughtful and articulate. It was impossible to reconcile their age and demeanor with their accused crimes. And I found that fascinating. I decided I wanted to share this experience with a wider audience, introduce people to this population that, otherwise, would remain hidden forever. And the timing felt right, considering this was the first time in twenty years we, as a society, have begun to reconsider whether or not a juvenile should be incarcerated for life with no chance to parole
[…] The challenge was to craft an authentic journey for the audience — from loving these boys to learning about their crimes, being horrified and questioning that original love, to immediately being reminded what you loved about them in the first place and then reminded again why you questioned that love… That back and forth journey is the honest experience of getting to know these boys.”
Following the film will be a panel discussion with Shakur Abdullah, Case Manager II at ReConnect, Inc.; Dr. Colleen Conoley, neuropsychologist; Annie Hayden, Assistant Douglas County Public Defender; and Amy Miller, Legal Director at ACLU of Nebraska. Juliet Summers, Policy Coordinator at Voices for Children in Nebraska will moderate.


