The documentary “Time” follows activist Sybil Fox Richardson, also known as Fox Rich, during her fight to release her husband Rob from the notorious Angola Prison. As she battles the system, Rich is raising six sons, including twins born shortly after Rob went to prison.
“Time” moves back and forth in … time, shifting between Fox Rich’s present-day efforts and home video footage she shot of the kids growing up and hitting milestones, always without a father.
The director of “Time” is filmmaker and artist Garrett Bradley, who last year became the first Black woman to take home the documentary directing award at the Sundance Film Festival.
Bradley first met Fox Rich, the subject of “Time,” while working on a short film called “Alone,” a New York Times Op-Doc that also followed a woman whose partner was in prison. Originally, Bradley saw “Time” as a companion film to “Alone.”
Supporting her in making “Time” was Rahdi Taylor, who runs the Artists in Residence fellowship program at Concordia, a studio founded with backing from Laurene Powell Jobs. The studio’s fellowship was created to support up-and-coming, diverse filmmakers, and Bradley was among Concordia’s first group of fellows.
Being a Concordia fellow was especially helpful to Bradley as she sought resources to edit her film, which uses both the footage Bradley shot of Fox Rich, and Rich’s 100-plus hours of home videos.
“It’s a magical moment when somebody comes to you and says, ‘What do you need?,’ and you know how to answer that question,” Bradley says.
Taylor talks about why she was so drawn to Bradley’s work, and shares other resources she’s created for documentary filmmakers over the years, including the Doc Film Money Map, which helps nonfiction filmmakers find state rebates and tax incentives.