This bit of news had a particular resonance for me as the startlingly pretty girl in the photo accompanying the piece was one of the documentary contributors I worked with on a First Light short film commission just before Xmas.
Rhiannon was the only girl at the young offenders residential centre who wanted to participate in the documentary, and she certainly made an impact - even before we knew her story. She was carrying around an aura of damaged hopelessness. She wouldn't hold eye contact with any of us, and her body language was very closed. I noticed scars on her arms from self-harming, and although she had a stunning figure, she seemed to be completely lacking in confidence - choosing to sit away from the rest of us in our first meeting... drawing her name in sprawling graphics on a piece of paper at the table - eyes down when she spoke and circling over the letters, tracing them like that's all she could do to keep her temper at bay.
The only twinkle of positively that we witnessed from this fragile-looking girl came when she exclaimed that we might be able to help her become an actress in Hollywood. My heart sank - I know most teenage girls dream of being enveloped in the glitz and glamour of stardom but did she really think that talking about one of more than 30 crimes she was waiting to be charged for (at that time) could possibly help project her as a screen siren?
Rhiannon's boyfriend had to fill in the permission form I gave her as she wasn't sure how to spell their address. The other four contributors (all boys under the age of 21) opened up quickly and told the stories leading to their crimes straight to Pete with the sound recorder - but Rhiannon asked to be alone for her interview. When they were finished - the anguish on Pete's face alone told us that her story had been tragic.
During a short break, Pete revealed that Rhiannon's story involved drinking, and a stealing spree - culminating in an unprovoked attack on a much younger girl in a park. Even though I knew she was incredibly damaged, I couldn't get my head around the fact that the quiet yet volatile girl in the next room had bitten another girls' breast, then pulled her along the ground by the hair, until friends stepped in to make Rhiannon let go.
The week-long shoot was incredibly haunting and emotionally draining, as the stories unravelled and our friendship with the contributors deepened. I didn't feel unsafe, or threatened - the only thing I was worried about was keeping an eye on the petty cash and camera kit, as we knew several of the resident were serial thieves. Ironically enough, although they didn't steal anything from us, the week after, Pete got a call from the kids' youth support leader to say that two of the boys we'd interviewed had been kicked out for attempting to steal the TV in the communal area - an area they blatantly knew was monitored by CCTV cameras.
I'd wondered why this First Light film had taken so much longer to be released - the other we made around the same time, Brave Face (about a community of young people affected by the summer riots in Edmonton) went live a few weeks ago. I suppose now, seeing Rhiannon's face in the local press means that she's finally been sentenced for the crime she talked about in the documentary. I haven't yet seen a final cut of the documentary, but I do know that Pete didn't want to show the faces of any of the contributors in case it threw up any legal disputes.
Rhiannon has been sentenced to ten months at a Young Offenders Institute, and pleaded guilty to the crime. At the time of filming, she showed little remorse for the attack - as did all bar one of the other contributors. Will this sentence put Rhiannon on course to a happier life? I'd like to hope so - it would be such a waste of life to see her get sucked down again, repeating a routine of escapism sort through drink and drugs which will inevitably lead to violence.
I feel such great sadness looking at her face in the black and white picture in front of me - I mean I have no doubt the courts reached the right decision, but I spent a week with this girl and I definitely witnesses moments - no, sparks of intelligence and wit hidden - buried below a steely exterior scarred by years of neglect and abuse. It's going to take a lot to make Rhinannon whole again, but I think the first and most poignant thing that's missing from Rhiannon's life is love. But who's going to give that to her when most of the people she knows are also lacking the capacity to love and be loved?
