Missouri's prison system announced last month that it was "overwhelmed" with donations of quilting supplies. The attention followed the May release of the Netflix documentary "The Quilters," which centers on the lives of several incarcerated men who make quilts in the state's maximum security prison in Licking.
The quilts don't stay with the prisoners. After the last stitch is set, the blankets are donated and shipped to children in the state's foster care system.
"I heard about it and went and called the prison," said the film's creator, Jenifer McShane. "I asked if I could visit without a crew, just to come and observe. I spent a couple of days doing that. After that, I was kind of convinced that this was a story I really wanted to tell."
The film closely follows several of the prisoners in the program at the South Central Correctional Center. Most of its scenes take place in a cramped room filled with quilting supplies where the men spend hours perfecting their blankets.
Being in that room, McShane said, was unlike anything she's experienced in other prisons.
"The biggest difference is that I sensed pride," she said. "There's pride in the fact that they want to make [the quilts] as beautiful as possible. They want to be kind to each other, and they care about what they're doing. There's care and pride, and you don't always find that."
To hear the full conversation with filmmaker Jenifer McShane, including her reflections on screening the documentary for corrections officials and incarcerated people in other states, listen to "St. Louis on the Air" on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube, or click the play button below.
"St. Louis on the Air" brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. The production intern is Darrious Varner. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr.
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