Podcast Summary: Bulwark Takes — "The Alabama Solution" May Change How You See Prisons

Host: Sonny Bunch (Culture Editor, The Bulwark)
Guests: Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman (Co-directors, The Alabama Solution)
Date: February 20, 2026

Overview

In this episode of Bulwark Takes, host Sonny Bunch speaks with documentary filmmakers Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman about their Oscar-nominated HBO Max documentary The Alabama Solution. The film exposes the realities inside Alabama’s prison system, including secretive administration, systemic violence, and the organizing efforts of incarcerated activists. The conversation explores documentary ethics, the unique access the filmmakers obtained (including cell phone footage sourced from prisoners themselves), and the broader implications of mass incarceration on society.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Stage: Perspective and Approach

• Sonny Bunch openly admits he is not a “prison reform guy,” but the film moved him because it humanizes incarcerated people and starkly shows prison conditions ([02:21]).
  • Quote:

    "Watching this really, really moved me, because... people who commit crimes should be in prison, but they should also be treated humanely." — Sonny Bunch ([02:21])

2. Origin of the Documentary

• Jarecki’s prior documentary work (“Capturing the Friedmans”) exposed him to the secretive nature of U.S. prisons ([03:35]).
  • Alabama’s prison system had seemed closed off, but access was granted initially to film a Christian revival event.
  • The 'facade': Inmates confided in filmmakers that the event was staged and urged them to investigate real conditions ([03:35–06:06]).

  “All most documentaries that you watch about prisons only happened because the prison has allowed the filmmakers to come in and can control what they're seeing.” — Charlotte Kaufman ([06:06])

3. The Power of Contraband Cell Phone Footage

• Cell phones inside allowed real, uncensored documentation by prisoners — bypassing state narrative and institutional secrecy ([11:18]).
  • Quote:

    “Getting access to that footage meant that we were liberated from the approved narrative and from the approved visuals and access that, you know, otherwise we would have been constrained by.” — Charlotte Kaufman ([11:18])

  • Filmmakers built trust by being available anytime prisoners could safely communicate.

4. Documentary Ethics and Visual Language

• The filmmakers embraced the rawness and imperfection of cell phone footage as an intentional aspect of the film’s visual language ([16:21–18:32]).
  • Sought to avoid stark contrast between “slick” outside footage and prisoner-derived material.
  • The constraints—vertical video, graininess, shaky images—became a metaphor for life inside: boxed-in and surveilled.

  “That sort of a metaphor for the whole thing. So you feel a little bit of the claustrophobia in a small way that's present in the prison all the time.” — Andrew Jarecki ([16:21])

5. Case Study: Steven Davis’ Death

• The story of Steven Davis, a prisoner killed by a guard (Rod Gadsden), became the film’s throughline.
  • The filmmakers learned of his beating in real time and documented the family’s struggle for answers and justice ([20:50]).
  • They used covert methods (cell phones in pockets, off-the-cuff filming) due to institutional obstruction ([23:36]).

  “She... had the presence of mind to say, I don't want this to happen to any other mother, what I just went through. So, you guys, I'm going to help you in whatever way I can.” — Andrew Jarecki ([20:50])

6. Obstruction and Control by Prison Authorities

• Institutional efforts to hide abuses were pervasive. Even lawyer-client calls were surveilled, chilling attempts to get at the truth ([25:46]).

  “He says to him, you know, are, are you by yourself? And he says, no, no, I got an officer right here. In other words... this officer is standing over me and not allowing me to do it and... is feeding me lines.” — Andrew Jarecki ([25:46])

7. State Response: Denial and Retaliation

• Interviewed officials defended the system, deflecting criticism despite overwhelming evidence of corruption and harm ([29:51]).
  • Prison administration focuses on punishing whistleblowers and protest organizers, notably Robert Earl Council (Kinetic Justice), Melvin Ray, and Raoul Poole ([32:35]).
  • Solitary confinement and other punitive measures are employed to suppress activism and silence dissent ([32:35–34:03]).

  “It's not a situation where they... were in the film and then they got punished for being in the film. Right. They were... retaliated against regularly starting from long before we ever started making the film.” — Andrew Jarecki ([32:35])

8. Systemic Profit and Labor Strikes

• Alabama prisons rely on unpaid inmate labor (estimated $450 million/year). Organizing and work stoppages are used to shine a light on abuses ([37:08]).
  • Organizing is uniquely difficult because “the company you're protesting controls every aspect of your life” ([41:20]).
  • Quote:

    “They have some sort of like, visual authority over the cell phone footage. And so I think we also tried to make sure that all of our own original principal photography, outside also felt very raw and textured and, you know, not overly controlled.” — Charlotte Kaufman ([18:32])

  • Prison response to organizing is collective punishment: cutting visitation, commissary, and food across the system ([42:08]).

9. Call to Action

• The filmmakers urge viewers to visit thealabamasolution.com to explore cases, get more information, and take directed action (such as calling prisons to demand protections for whistleblowers) ([43:23]).
  • The term “Alabama Solution” is now used within the prison system as code—indicating how the film has impacted both prisoners and guards ([44:32]).

  “The prisons have to be something that people vote... asking what does this politician... what is their stance on prison and on accountability and transparency?” — Charlotte Kaufman ([45:21])

10. Reflections and Audience Connection

• Sonny reflects on how the film changed his perspective—not about the need for incarceration, but about the necessity for humane treatment and real reform ([48:20]).

  “Watching this documentary is just like, it's. The, the whole system has failed in that regard. It's. It's a failure. Which, you know, means that I guess in. On some level, I am a prison reformer in that I think that this should be reformed and stopped.” — Sonny Bunch ([48:20])

• The filmmakers stress that mass incarceration impacts everyone, and that secrecy in the system keeps the public from seeing prisoners as humans ([50:12]).

  “45% of Americans have had a loved one who's been incarcerated... everybody's getting touched by prison.” — Andrew Jarecki ([50:12])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Documentary Transparency:

  "We were liberated from the approved narrative and from the approved visuals and access that, you know, otherwise we would have been constrained by." — Charlotte Kaufman ([11:18])

• On Institutional Violence:

  "This seems like the entire prison system is a criminal enterprise. ...The drugs are coming in from the guards." — Andrew Jarecki ([08:32])

• On Labor and Collective Punishment:

  “They have a captive workforce who is probably going to be so happy to not be inside these death camps that they'll kind of accept any sort of conditions and just be happy to be outside working in the free world.” — Charlotte Kaufman ([37:08])

• On Impact and Action:

  "There’s a button there that will give the ability to take some very specific and relatively easy action just to register your feelings and to be able to call the prison where the men are being held and say, protect these guys. We're watching." — Andrew Jarecki ([43:23])

• Phrase Entering Prison Vocabulary:

  "Officers will say... 'Don't Alabama solution me.'... the fact that there is the possibility of being exposed and they can't just... be confident that what they do behind these walls... will remain hidden is a positive thing." — Charlotte Kaufman ([44:32])

Important Segment Timestamps

• [02:21] — Sonny describes being moved by the film despite not being a “prison reform guy”
• [03:35] — Jarecki discusses the genesis of the project and initial access to Alabama prisons
• [06:06] — Kaufman exposes the realities of state-mediated documentaries
• [11:18] — The pivotal role of cell phone footage and prisoner collaboration
• [16:21] — Embracing visual imperfection as a metaphor for confinement
• [20:50] — The filmmakers’ real-time involvement in Steven Davis’s murder investigation
• [25:46] — Institutional interference in legal access and witness intimidation
• [29:51] — Contrasting state officials’ denials with evidence of systemic abuse
• [32:35] — Discussion of retaliation against prisoner activists and growing authoritarianism
• [37:08] — Examination of prison labor and the logic/impact of mass work stoppages
• [43:23] — Website as a hub for action and further investigation
• [44:32] — “Alabama solution” becomes a cautionary phrase inside prisons
• [48:20] — Sonny’s own takeaways as an audience member

Takeaways & Call to Action

• The episode paints a damning portrait of the Alabama prison system—one of secrecy, violence, and impunity, but also of hope and resistance in the form of inmate-led organizing.
• The Alabama Solution is not only a documentary, but also a rallying point for public engagement, legislative scrutiny, and social change.
• Viewers/listeners are encouraged to watch the film, visit the website (thealabamasolution.com), and participate in the suggested advocacy efforts.

Final Thoughts

By decentering the “approved narrative” and prioritizing footage and voices from inside, the filmmakers offer a harrowing, intimate, and transformative look at American incarceration. The open and sometimes raw conversation among Sonny, Andrew, and Charlotte spotlights a corner of society most Americans rarely see—urging us not just to bear witness, but to act.

[End of summary.]