Circles
A film about restorative justice and community healing, Circles is an inside look at sentencing circles—an alternative approach to sentencing offenders in the Yukon. By bringing together the perpetrator of crime, his or her victims, peers and elders, sentencing circles focus on finding ways to heal the offender, the victim and the community, instead of simply punishment. For many Aboriginal men in the North, going to jail was a natural extension of attending missionary-run schools. For some, circle sentencing is a way to break the cycle of crime, court, prison, and to allow them to re-connect with their spiritual traditions. Circles works so well that Aboriginals from the Yukon have helped set up similar programs elsewhere in Canada and in the US. With its potential to bring community members together, the circle is a powerful alternative to prison terms imposed by courts—not only for Aboriginal people in the North but, potentially, for all communities.
Director, Researcher: Shanti Thakur Produced by the National Film Board of Canada
©1997, Documentary, 58 minutes, Canada
"Highly recommended." — Joanne Peters, University of Manitoba, CM Magazine
"...definitely recommended." — Video Librarian
"Highly recommended... fascinating... deserves a broad audience." — Orlando Archibeque, Auraria Library, University of Colorado at Denver MC Journal: the Journal of Academic Media Librarianship
Silver Apple Award, National Educational Media Network, Oakland
Best Documentary, University Film and Video Association, National Conference
Bronze Plaque, Columbus International Film Festival
Best Documentary Feature (nomination), American Indian Film Festival, San Francisco
Best Educational Documentary (nomination), Dreamspeakers Film Festival, Edmonton
