Experiencing Interruptions?

COMPLEX

COMPLEX depicts the vast system of privately operated prisons which incarcerate migrants and refugees under contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in the United States. In 2019 the average daily population in ICE custody reached 50000 with upwards of 70% incarcerated in for-profit facilities. Narrated entirely by refugees who were in detention as the global pandemic began to infect prison populations, this short documentary focuses on the La Palma Correctional Facility located in Eloy, Arizona. Functioning as a chapter in a larger project, the documentary suggests the pervasiveness of the border security industrial complex in the American geography and reveals the commodification of human displacement.

  • David Taylor
    Producer
  • Project Type:
    Documentary, Experimental, Short
  • Runtime:
    13 minutes 25 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    August 1, 2021
  • Production Budget:
    3,500 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    English, Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital Video
  • Aspect Ratio:
    16:9
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography

David Taylor’s artwork examines place, territory, history and politics. Exhibited widely, his projects reveal how borders can function not only as spatial demarcations, but also as an amplifying device particularly attuned to changing geo-political, environmental and social conditions. Recent exhibition venues include the Boise Art Museum, Nevada Museum of Art, Joslyn Art Museum, the MFA, Houston and Museo de las Artes Universidad de Guadalajara. Taylor’s work can be found in numerous collections including the Library of Congress, the Phoenix Art Museum and the Nelson-Atkins Museum. The Guardian, Places Journal, Gizmodo and Arquine have all recently featured his projects. In 2019 Taylor was awarded a residency at Proyecto Siqueiros: La Tallera in Cuernavaca, Mexico and an Arizona Commission on the Arts Research and Development Grant. A 2008 Guggenheim Fellow, Taylor is a member of the Photography, Video and Imaging faculty in the University of Arizona School of Art.

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