“Girls Incarcerated” is a Netflix original documentary that follows the lives of several girls who are serving time in Madison Juvenile Center.
Credit: @xodeadpegasus
I“Girls Incarcerated” is a Netflix original documentary, released March 2. The documentary follows young girls who are incarcerated in an Indiana juvenile correctional facility known as Madison.
The documentary was recorded in 2017 and was filmed over the course of several months. Each episode is about 45 minutes long; each one titled as a different chapter. The chapter titles give a small insight as to what will happen in the episode; they are named chapters because they are different chapters of the girls’ lives in Madison.
Madison Juvenile Correctional Facility is located in Madison, Indiana. Before taking in students, the facility underwent a renovation to remodel older buildings into a high school setting. The facility began to take juveniles in November of 2009 and is the only juvenile center in Indiana that is only females, according to Division of Youth Services.
Throughout the series, there are several girls introduced to the audience, allowing viewers to see their behavior in their early days at Madison.
When a new girl is shown, they give a short self-introduction explaining why they are incarcerated, give a little insight into their past and occasionally say what their expected release date is.
There are main characters that the viewers recognize throughout and learn more about as the documentary goes on.
In the beginning, the viewers get a sense of how troublesome the girls behave toward their peers, faculty and themselves. This behavior may seem unprovoked, however, the further the audience gets into the series, the more key elements they will learn in the girls’ lives.
These elements in their lives show a more vulnerable side, compared to the hard exterior they attempt to show the rest of the world.
All of the girls shown share little insights into their pasts, revealing why they came to be where they are now. A lot of them come from bad home environments, tough neighborhoods, abuse, drug-ridden pasts and the list goes on.
After learning about their saddening pasts, viewers can’t help but gain some empathy for the young girls’ disastrous lives thus far.
The film work throughout is unique and modern. Most of the one-on-one interviews are filmed outside, giving a pleasing aesthetic visually. Even though the documentary is based on teenagers in a juvenile correctional facility, the editing shows all sides to them, from arguing with others to the girls getting along and smiling.
The editing depicts the girls as being more than young “delinquents.” Viewers get an inside look at how the girls develop due to being held in Madison. Another interesting aspect of the documentary is the updates about girls who are released during the series.
Some girls get in trouble and return to Madison, but there are also girls who flip their lives around and succeed.
Overall, the documentary is well put together and well thought out. Storylines of the girls hold the audience’s attention, leaving the viewer wanting to know how each girl will develop once they get released. Ultimately, those who like reality television will like this documentary series. There is a total of eight episodes, each as interesting as the last.
