Punishment

A powerful documentary about reflection and introspection at a Jesuit silent retreat for prison inmates in a maximum security prison.

Since 2013, Halden Prison has offered a Jesuit silent retreat to its inmates. Here, they are to live like monks in complete silence, withdrawing from the world. The only interruption is a daily conversation with the priest. Øystein Mamen makes his directorial debut in this powerful documentary. With an observational style and by following the conversations between the priest and the inmates, we get closer to their thoughts, what they regret, and how they envision their future.

Director

Øystein Mamen (b. 1978) is an award-winning cinematographer and director. Mamen has education from The Norwegian Film School, European Film College, University of Oslo, and University of Copenhagen. As a cinematographer, he has worked on films such as Childhood (2017), From the Balcony (2017), Children (2019), and Self Portrait (2020). Punishment is his first film as a director.

This film is part of