Wipe It Over

WIPE IT OVER explores the impact of possible over-sentencing on a young life. With Jimmy Doherty
The six REALITIES CHECKED short films, scripted by Damian Le Bas using the anonymised words of Romany and Traveller people interviewed for the Realities Checked project. They aim to highlight and explore several recurring themes discussed by the interviewees. These are, namely, prejudice encountered in day-to-day interaction with the economy; harsh evictions; poor experiences of healthcare; possible over-sentencing for offences; domestic violence, and violence from members of the public. Each of these themes is, if you like, 'double sided': it consists not just the negative dimension of a difficult experience suffered, but also the positive 'counter-theme' of the resilience that is required negotiate and overcome it. This gives us a series of the sort of powerful asymmetric couplings which are common in Gypsy and Traveller life. It should generate a sense of human optimism and hope, in addition to acknowledgement of the difficulties that prejudice can create.