Holloway

0

Skip to Content

HOME

ABOUT

WATCH

IMPACT

TEAM

SUPPORT

HOST

JOIN US

HOME

ABOUT

WATCH

IMPACT

TEAM

SUPPORT

HOST

JOIN US

HOME

ABOUT

WATCH

IMPACT

TEAM

SUPPORT

HOST

JOIN US

ABOUT THE FILM

Six women return to the now abandoned Holloway Prison to take part in a women’s circle. Sharing some of the most intimate experiences of their lives, they each unravel what led them to prison, building an eye-opening portrait of failing systems and trauma, while discovering their extraordinary capacity to heal through sisterhood.

Directed by BAFTA Breakthrough Daisy-May Hudson (Lollipop, Half Way) and EMMY nominated Sophie Compton (Another Body), this deeply moving and transformational documentary feature was made via a unique process of a trauma-informed co-creation with six contributors, a group of talented, high-profile women who are running charities and using their lived-experience to call for change. They are Aliyah Ali, Mandy Ogunmokun, Sarah Cassidy, Lady Unchained, Gerrah, and Tamar Mujanay.

HOLLOWAY is a profound, meditative, eye-opening and ultimately inspiring exploration of trauma and the immense human capacity for recovery.

6 women’s stories

The film was co-created with six extraordinary women, all of whom chose to return to Holloway Prison to tell their story.

164+ years of history

Holloway Prison stood on the site from 1852 to 2016

5 years in the making

The co-creators and filmmakers spent 5 years making the film between 2019 and 2024, using a co-created, trauma-informed model

1 extraordinary film

Winner of the Audience Award at the BFI London Film Festival and nominated for the BIFA Maverick award, HOLLOWAY has had over 80 screenings across the UK and counting. It has touched thousands from Glasgow to Falmouth.

SCREENINGS

UPCOMING SCREENINGS

Eventive Live Screening

Date: 19th - 21st January
Location: Online

Book tickets

PictureEast Festival

Date: 20 January
Location: East London

AVAILABLE SOON

BEAM Hertford

Date: 19 February 2026
Location: Hertford

BOOK TICKETS

ARCHIVE SCREENINGS

The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 29 June 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 10 July 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 11 July 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 12 July 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 13 July 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 14 July 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 15 July 2025
The Cameo Picturehouse - Edinburgh - 17 July 2025
Glasgow Film Theatre - Glasgow - 22 July 2025
Manchester University - Manchester
Crime and Justice Film Festival 2025 - Manchester - 21 May 2025
Chester Cinema, Picturehouse - Chester - 2 July 2025
Picturehouse at FACT - Liverpool - 4 July 2025
City Screen Picturehouse - York - 4 August 2025
Home MCR - Manchester - 7 August 2025
Hyde Park Picture House - Leeds - 19 August 2025
MAC Birmingham - Birmingham - 13 August 2025
Phoenix Cinema and Art Centre - Leicester - 14 August 2025
Phoenix Cinema and Art Centre - Leicester - 8 September 2025
Curzon Clevedon - Clevedon - 16 October 2025
Eden House (Approved Premises) Bristol - Bristol - 14 October 2024
HMP Eastwood Park - Gloucestershire - 15 October 2025
Warwick Arts Centre - Coventry - 12 November 2025
Harborough Cinema - Harborough - 26 November 2025
None - please get in contact if you are cinema interested in screening the film in Wales
None - please get in contact if you are cinema interested in screening the film in Northern Ireland
BFI London Film Festival, The ICA - Central London - 11 October 2024
BFI London Film Festival, BFI Southbank NFT2 - Central London - 13 October 2024
BFI London Film Festival, BFI Southbank NFT2 - Central London - 15 October 2024
Private impact screening hosted by Lady Edwina Grosvenor - London - 27 November 2024
Royal Courts of Justice Screening for members of the King’s Bench - London - 25 March 2025
Picturehouse Central - Central London - 18 June 2025
Finsbury Park Picturehouse -North London - 20 June 2025
The ICA - Central London -20 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 21 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 22 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 24 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 25 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 26 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 27 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 28 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 29 June 2025
The ICA - Central London - 2 July 2025
The ICA - Central London - 3 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 5 July 2025
The ICA - Central London - 5 July 2025
The ICA - Central London - 6 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 8 July 2025
The ICA - Central London - 9 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 11 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 11 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 12 July 2025
Finsbury Park Picturehouse - North London - 13 July 2025
Finsbury Park Picturehouse - North London - 14 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 14 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 15 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 16 July 2025
Finsbury Park Picturehouse - North London - 17 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 18 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 19 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 19 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 20 July 2025
Hackney Picturehouse - East London - 21 July 2025
Garden Cinema - Central London - 21 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 22 July 2025
Genesis Cinema - East London - 22 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 24 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 25 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 26 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 28 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 29 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 30 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 31 July 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 1 August 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 2 August 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 5 August 2025
Bertha Doc House - Central London - 6 August 2025
Garden Cinema - Central London - 11 August 2025
Garden Cinema - Central London - 19 August 2025
Garden Cinema - Central London - 21 August 2025
HMMPSS Screening at the Ministry of Justice - London - 4 September 2025
Peckham Plex - South London - 23 September 2025
City & Guilds Foundation - London - 7 October 2025
Brit School - London - 14 October 2025
Hope Street, Women’s Centre - Southampton - 7 March 2025
Epsom Picturehouse - Surrey - 23 June 2025
Arts Cinema - Cambridge - 24 June 2025
Phoenix Picturehouse - Oxford - 25 June 2025
Phoenix Picturehouse - Oxford - 7 July 2025
Harbour Lights Picturehouse - Southampton - 9 July 2025
Duke of York's Picturehouse - Brighton - 10 July 2025
The Palace Cinema, Broadstairs - Kent - 15 July 2025
Otherfield Film Festival - Sussex - 1 August 2025
Cinema City - Norwich - 11 August 2025
Exeter Picturehouse - Exeter - 13 August 2025
The Poly, Falmouth - Cornwall - 6 September 2025
Lewes Depot - Sussex - 20 October 2025
The Riverside Cinema, Woodbridge - Suffolk - 15 September
The Riverside Cinema, Woodbridge -Suffolk - 16 September
The Riverside Cinema, Woodbridge - Suffolk - 17 September

Winchester Law Week - Winchester - 18 October 2025
Safehaven Screening, St Peters - Brighton - 18 November 2025
Women’s Centre for Cornwall, Bodmin - Cornwall - 26 November 2025
Institute for Arts in Therapy and Education - London - 29 November 2025
Hot Docs, TIFF Lightbox 3 - Toronto, Canada - 27 April 2025
Hot Docs, TIFF Lightbox 3 - Toronto, Canada - 29 April 2025
Oakville Festivals of Film and Art - Oakville, Canada - 18 June - 25 June 2025
This Human World Festival - Vienna, Austria - 3 December 2025

THE STORY IN NUMBERS

Why this film matters

Of women in prison in England and Wales :
(Source: Prison Reform Trust, Bromley Briefings 2024)

7 in 10

Reported they had been a victim of domestic violence

31%

Were taken into care as children (vs 2% of the general population),

53%

Experienced abuse as children

Half

Left prison without settled accommodation
(2022-23)

OUR IMPACT SO FAR

82+

Cinema Screenings

Across the UK. From June-Dec 2025, shown in independent cinemas nationwide - from Glasgow to Falmouth.

43+

Community Partners

Hosting Screenings. Including universities, charities and organisations such as Oxford University, Women in Prison, Sistah Space, Anawim, Inquest, Clean Break and the Nelson Trust and many more.

Ongoing

Impact

In professional, training and policy spaces. Screenings held at the Ministry of Justice, Royal Courts of Justice, prisons, women's centres, universities and funder conferences, with parliamentary and regional council events upcoming.

TEAM

Tamar is in her second year of acting school and is also a dancer and choreographer. She has acted for both film and music videos, and is passionate about furthering her career in the creative industries.

Lady Unchained is a poet, performer, award-winning broadcaster, mentor, artist manager, TedXLondon Speaker, host for National Prison Radio, facilitator, curator and advocate for Life after Prison and founder and creative director of Becoming Unchained CIC.
Read about her work here

Sarah is a proud parent of her beautiful baby girl and is passionate about being a good role model for her daughter. Drawing on her love for cooking, she is currently working on a business plan for a catering business.
Read about A Fairer Chance, a charity Sarah cares deeply about, here

Aliyah is the CEO of Daddyless Daughters CIC, which she founded to create physical and emotional safe spaces for vulnerable young women affected by family breakdown, abuse and adversity, through mentoring and creative expression.
Read about her work here

Gerrah is back working full time within the animal liberation and climate movement, and continues to use her lived experience to speak out against the criminalisation of activists. She remains a staunch prison abolitionist following her experiences within Holloway, dreaming and fighting for a world where all prisons are transformed into gardens and libraries.
Read about her work here

Mandy is CEO of the charity she established, Treasures Foundation, discovering the treasures in women escaping addiction, offending behaviour and trauma. Treasures prepares women for rich, fulfilling lives through supported accommodation.
Read about her work here

Sophie is BIFA and Emmy nominated documentary director and producer who tells women’s stories of injustice and healing, creating substantial projects to drive cultural impact alongside each film.Her work has been supported by Sundance Catalyst, Doc NYC 40 under 40, Impact Partners, BFI Doc Society and others.
Read about Sophie’s production company Murmuration Productions here

Daisy-May is a BAFTA Breakthrough, Grierson & BIFA-nominated writer/director. Her debut feature documentary HALF WAY followed her and her family’s experience of homelessness and was self distributed in cinemas all across the UK. Her first narrative feature, LOLLIPOP was critically acclaimed after its release in cinemas and will be showing on the BBC soon.
Read more about her work here

Alice Hughes, is a BIFA, Grierson nominated and BAFTA Cymru-winning producer.Her multi-award winning work, backed by BFI Doc Society and others, has featured in Academy and BAFTA Qualifying festivals worldwide, including SXSW, Sundance London and BFI LFF.
Read more about her here

Polly Creed, is Development Executive at Emmy-nominated The Lighthouse Film and TV. Polly is co-founder of Power Play Productions, a theatre and film company that specialises in telling women’s stories of injustice.

Claire O’Neill, is a BIFA and Grierson nominated producer with experience in independent, studio and HETV production. Recent credits include Coralie Fargeat’s THE SUBSTANCE, BRIDGET JONES: MAD ABOUT THE BOY and Steve McQueen’s BLITZ. She’s currently in post-production on Alicia MacDonald’s CC EMILY and Lena Dunham’s TOO MUCH.

Lorraine Maher is a skilled facilitator, a seasoned leader, change-maker, and advocate for racial justice, inclusion, and meaningful community engagement. With over three decades’ experience spanning the arts, criminal justice, and social care, she brings both strategic vision and lived insight to her work. Lorraine is best known as the founder of IamIrish, an award-winning project celebrating the stories of the multi-ethnic Irish diaspora, and is currently leading innovative approaches to adult early help and co-production within local government. Her work centres people, challenges systems, and speaks truth to power. Whether facilitating workshops, building services, or speaking on panels, Lorraine brings heart, humour, and a fierce commitment to justice.

Maria Takaendisa is a UKCP-registered Systemic and Family Psychotherapist, consultant, and coach with a background in psychiatric nursing and extensive experience across NHS and local authority mental health services. She specialises in trauma-informed, culturally sensitive work with individuals, families, and organisations—centering relationships, collaboration, and systemic change.

Stella Heath Keir is a graduate of National Film & Television School, Stella has had work premiered at Cannes, La Semaine de la Critique, Sundance, Palm Springs, BFI London Film Festival, Edinburgh Int Film Festival and Sheffield Doc/Fest, amongst others, and has been nominated for BAFTA, BIFA and RTS awards.
Read more about her work here

Sarah trained at La Fémis in Paris, and has lived in Bombay, London and the Shropshire Hills. Among her recent credits are features THINK OF ENGLAND, Richard Hawkins’ upcoming 1940’s dark-tragi-comedy set in the Orkney islands, and CHUCK CHUCK BABY, Janis Pugh’s BFI sing-along gay comedy-romance which won a BAFTA CYMRU for best feature. Sarah’s cinematography on Jenna Bass’ FLATLAND (winner of Best African Feature at the Jo’burg international film festival) was described as ‘by turns fuzzy-dreamy and jarringly vivid’ by The Hollywood Reporter. She is a founding member of CUT IT, a crew-led initiative which is challenging our failure as an industry to act proportionately in response to the climate crisis.
Read more about her work here

SUPPORT OUR CO-CREATORS’ WORK

Daddyless Daughters

Founded by Aliyah Ali, The Daddyless Daughters and Project CIC provides physical and emotional safe spaces for girls and young women aged 11 – 25 years old, who have been affected by family breakdown, abuse and adversity.

Read more here

Treasures Foundation

Founded by Mandy Ogunmokun, Treasures Foundation provides safe accommodation in East London and specialist outreach support to women with histories of addiction, mental health, trauma.

Read more here

Beauty out of Ashes

Co-founded by Mandy Ogunmokun, Beauty out of Ashes formed in Spring 2022 to ensure that the voices of women and women’s organisations are integral to the design, construction and management of the ‘Women’s Floor’ on the Holloway Prison site, and fundraising for a more expansive Women’s Building.

Read more here

Becoming Unchained

Founded by Lady Unchained, Unchained facilitates the process of physical, psychological, legal and social emancipation for young people from the Black and Global Majority communities in the UK who have become incarcerated and are making their way through the Criminal Justice system.

Read more here

If you have been impacted by any issues raised in the film, the following organisations offer support:

For anyone struggling to cope, Samaritans 24hr helpline: 116 123

For victims or witnesses of crime, Victim Support 24hr helpline: +44 (0) 8 08 16 89 111

National Domestic Abuse Helpline +44 (0)808 2000 247

Supported by

OL64 Productions

Beehive Films

BFI Doc Society Fund

Rosa Foundation

The Triangle Trust

WMM Movies Production Assistance Program

InMaat Foundation

BFI Audience Fund with National Lottery Funding

UK Global Screen Fund

Chris de Pury

Arts Council England

Lady Edwina Grosvenor

Henry Rossi

National Lottery Heritage

National Lottery Community Fund

Islington Council Community Initiatives

Hoare's Bank Golden Bottle Trust

Hot Docs Dealmaker

Feminist Review Trust

Working Title Films

The Leigh Trust

HOST A SCREENING

COMING SOON

Bring Holloway to your organisation or community with our all-in-one Screening Pack. Designed to make hosting easy, meaningful, and trauma-informed, this comprehensive licence gives you everything you need to run an impactful one-off private screening in your community, workplace, or educational institution.

What’s included:

A digital one-time-use link to the film
A downloadable, comprehensive post-screening discussion guide
Fact-sheets and contextual materials
Trauma-informed screening guidelines
Reflection and feedback sheets
An exclusive filmed interview with the film’s co-creators, filmmakers, and contributors about the making of the film