‘In Prison My Whole Life’ will screen during London Film Festival

A new documentary film on the case of Mumia Abu-Jamal will screen at the London Film Festival next month. The film has the support of Amnesty International as part of its international campaign to abolish the death penalty.

The feature-length documentary, ‘In Prison My Whole Life’, examines the controversial case of Mumia Abu-Jamal, a former Black Panther Party activist who has been in prison for murder in the United States since 1981, much of that time facing a death sentence. There are serious doubts about the fairness of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s original trial and he is currently appealing against his conviction. Amnesty international is calling for fresh trial.

The 90-minute film profiles Mumia Abu-Jamal’s case through the eyes of 25-year-year-old William Francome, born on the day of Abu-Jamal’s arrest. ‘In Prison My Whole Life’ was directed by Marc Evans and produced by Livia Firth and Nick Goodwin Self. The acclaimed actor Colin Firth is the film’s executive producer. The film also features interviews with writers Alice Walker and Noam Chomsky, as well as the musicians Mos Def, Snoop Dogg and Steve Earle.

Livia Firth said:

“The film illustrates another example of the many reasons why the death penalty is never an acceptable form of punishment.

“Amnesty International has contributed to the making of the film, having previously called for a new trial for Mumia Abu-Jamal and we are thrilled that they have agreed to support the film as part of their ongoing worldwide campaign against capital punishment.”

Amnesty International UK Director Kate Allen said:

“It’s shocking that the US justice system has repeatedly failed to address the appalling violation of Mumia Abu-Jamal’s fundamental fair trial rights.

“We’ve documented Mumia Abu-Jamal’s plight several times before and we strongly welcome this film as a fresh opportunity to focus attention on his situation. We hope that the film’s viewers will back our call for a fair retrial for Mumia Abu-Jamal - and also support our work opposing the death penalty in the US and around the world.”

‘In Prison My Whole Life’ screens simultaneously at The Times bfi London Film Festival and at Rome’s International Film Festival on Thursday 25 October.

Find out more about the death penalty campaign