Feature Documentary Film  (in development)

It is estimated that two-thirds of all U.S. prisoners released will be arrested for a new crime within three years.  “Returning Citizens” focuses on the residents of Ward 8, a famously poor and crime-ridden neighborhood in Washington, D.C., and the Office of Returning Citizens Affairs (ORCA), a support center for the men and women returning to Ward 8 after serving prison sentences. Every person who walks through the doors of ORCA has a story and a past they can’t erase.  But by using the tools and support provided to them, they may just be able to earn themselves a second chance.

Director Saffron Cassaday examines this complex issue by taking us inside the lives of returning citizens.