MVFF44 (Bronze/Silver)

Raw and powerful, Courtroom 3H marks a confident documentary debut from director Antonio Méndez Esparza (Life and Nothing More, MVFF 2017). Shot in a single courtroom over the course of a month, the film takes viewers inside Florida’s Tallahassee Unified Family Court, which focuses on parental rights, juvenile delinquency, and other issues relating to minors. A fly-on-the-wall approach provides a window into the many factors and frustrations for families embroiled in Florida's legal system. Méndez Esparza's camera bears silent witness as heart-wrenching cases play out with stakes that couldn't be higher for the children, parents, and legal representatives involved. Shining a needed light on the economic disparities underlying so much of what occurs in our justice system, Courtroom 3H is a sometimes shocking, sometimes uncomfortable, but nuanced and necessary look into a world too few people know about.