On Jan. 23,

Strong Island

, a documentary directed and produced by Yance Ford ’94, was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. The documentary explores the reactions of his family to the murder of Ford’s older brother, William Jr., the lead-up to the murder, and the racial injustices of the American criminal justice system. The documentary previously received the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award at the Sundance Film Festival, and received a strong positive response from

The New York Times

and

Variety

. These achievements, remarkable on their own, are additionally impressive considering that

Strong Island

is Ford’s first feature length film.

During the fall semester, Ford returned to Hamilton for the first time in twenty-four years for a screening of the documentary. The documentary was screened as part of the fall F.I.L.M. series.

The Spectator

covered this event; a more in-depth summary of the film and Ford’s return to Hamilton is available on

The Spectator

’s website. Written by Michelle Chung ’20, the aforementioned article is titled “Yance Ford ’94 shows award winning Strong Island” and was published online on Sept. 28, 2017.

The documentary follows the story of black William Jr. who was a 24-year old in the process of becoming a corrections officer when the car he was driving was hit by white 19-year old Mark Reilly. In exchange for not reporting the accident to the police, Reilly, who was employed at an auto-body shop, agreed to have the repair done for free. However, Reilly never completed the repair, and after a series of verbal confrontations, Reilly shot and killed William Jr.

Reilly was never prosecuted for his crime. A grand jury composed of 23 white members declined to indict Reilly on charges of manslaughter, and the case never proceeded to trial. The documentary is a powerful testament to the ongoing effects of racism on the criminal justice system, especially when considering the crime and non-prosecution took place in the New York City area.

Strong Island

is available to stream on Netflix. The Academy Awards will take place on March 4, 2018.