A mother and child bond in an unusual prison visitation space in this poignant portrait
In Weekend Visits, a mother and her nine-year-old child spend a day drawing, shooting hoops, watching YouTube and playfully bantering in a small house behind a fence. The scene seems like a quintessential slice of American suburbia with the exception of a few amiss details. The house seems too pristine to be lived in, a security camera is mounted overhead, and their chatter is punctuated by details about the mother’s incarceration and her pending release.
This somewhat uncanny space is part of the Virginia Correctional Center for Women, where incarcerated women can spend time with their children in an environment that’s far more welcoming than typical visitation rooms. In his poignant and intimate portrait, the US director Pete Quandt weaves together scenes from the mother and son’s day, capturing their relationship with remarkable nuance for such a brief runtime. This window into their world captures not just the distinct contours of this peculiar place, but also what it means to love and parent a child under complicated circumstances.
Director: Pete Quandt
Producers: Hannah Whisenant, Garson Ormiston

videoDemography and migration
The volunteers who offer a last line of care for migrants at a contentious border
30 minutes

videoLove and friendship
What does it mean to say goodbye to a creature that doesn’t know you’re leaving?
13 minutes

videoLife stages
Grief, healing and laughter coexist at a unique retreat for widows and widowers
15 minutes

videoConsciousness and altered states
What do screens depicting serene natural scenes mean to those living in lock-up?
12 minutes

videoAnthropology
Margaret Mead explains why the family was entering a brave new world in this 1959 film
29 minutes

videoHuman rights and justice
Surreal, dazzling visuals form an Iranian expat’s tribute to defiance back home
10 minutes

videoWellbeing
Children of the Rwandan genocide face a unique stigma 30 years later
20 minutes

videoLove and friendship
Never marry a man you love too much, and other views on romance in Sierra Leone
5 minutes

videoHistory of technology
Curious singles and tech sceptics – what ‘computer dating’ looked like in 1966
6 minutes