Suicide in prison: The potentials and pitfalls of film-research collaborations

Abstract

Prisoner suicide rates are consistently higher than rates among communities outside prisons. Between 2012 and 2016, England and Wales’s prison suicide rates more than doubled, hitting record numbers in 2016. Often those most invested in prison safety are those personally impacted, and campaigns by prisoners’ families can have material effects on imprisonment. This article critically reflects on a collaboration between an academic research team (who authored this article), a bereaved mother and a theatre company, which aimed to raise awareness of prison suicide through verbatim film. Drawing upon interviews with the filmmakers and audience surveys, we examine the potentials and challenges of such collaborations. We conclude that film can engage audiences within and beyond social science, making complex subjects accessible, humanising marginalised people and potentially inspiring social change, but a sustained ethic of care is required to mitigate harms and manage expectations, which may involve difficult decisions for researchers.