An Ex-Con’s Journey Back to Prison: Revolving Doors

Fifteen years after he left prison, Jason Bobbitt found himself headed back. The father of five tried to find honest work once he got out, but couldn’t—getting nabbed on the exact same cocaine charges that first landed him behind bars. Now, in his 40s, he was facing up to ten years away from his home, his wife, and his kids, and there was nothing he could do about it.

In ‘Revolving Doors,’ filmmaker James Burns spent two years following Bobbitt and his family as the ex-convict prepared to head back to prison. The documentary chronicles how losing their father to jail for a second time devastated Bobbitt’s family, and—even after getting out on parole 18 months later—it was too late for most of the damage to be undone. The film is a portrait of American recidivism, told through the unique lens of a filmmaker who also served time in prison and struggled with the effects of incarceration.