Storyville: The Story of Karen & Omar Askia Ali (Work-in-Progress) by Julie Flandreau & Juliette Rando with Karen Ali

The Story of Karen & Omar Askia Ali
by Julie Flandreau and Juliette Rando with Karen Ali
(USA, Work in Progress, 20 minutes)

When Karen fell in love with Omar Askia Ali, he was serving a life sentence at Pennsylvania’s most violent prison for a crime he did not commit. Over the following four decades, the couple transcended prison walls, collaborating to improve the lives of incarcerated people and to overturn Omar’s wrongful conviction. Five years into production and nearly completed, the feature-length documentary will trace the couple's extraordinary lives, relationship, and struggle to clear Omar’s name. 

Julie Flandreau (Director/Editor) is an award-winning Franco-Swiss journalist and filmmaker focused on criminal justice, local government, human rights and public health in the US. Juliette Rando (Assistant Director) advocates for incarcerated people’s rights through policy and media avenues and focused her MPH on the public health implications of mass incarceration.

The Second Life of Freddie Nole
by Dana Nachman (USA, 2026, 21 minutes)

The film is a cinema verité documentary following Freddie Nole, who spent 50 years in prison for a mistake he made at age 17. He now meets newly released men at the prison gates, offering transportation, support, hope, dignity, and a path toward a second chance.

Dana Nachman is the founder of Sweet World Films. Her films include Witch Hunt (executive produced by Sean Penn), Pick of the Litter, and Dear Santa.