Documentary Screening &
Panel Discussion

Join us for a powerful screening of Songs Inside, a moving documentary that follows a group of incarcerated women in an Australian prison as they take part in a life-changing music program. 

Through learning instruments and writing their own songs, the women embark on a creative journey that rebuilds their confidence and self-determination. As they work towards a remarkable performance with the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, the process also brings painful memories of trauma and addiction to the surface, challenging their resilience and resolve.

The documentary won the 2024 Adelaide Film Festival Audience Award for Best Documentary and recently the 2025 Sydney Film Festival's prestigious Documentary Australia Award for Best Australian Documentary. See below for further details about the film.

Following the screening, there will be an opportunity to hear from Director Shalom Almond and several of the film's participants, as they share behind-the-scenes insights into the making of the film and the profound impact of the music program.

This event will explore the intersection of creativity, incarceration, and the possibilities of healing through music and storytelling. It also complements our SALA exhibition, Artists on the Inside, showing in the Kerry Packer Civic Gallery, 31 July - 29 August 2025. 

Presented by The Bob Hawke Prime Ministerial Centre. 

Images: Stills from Songs Inside.

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Songs Inside had its world premiere at the Adelaide Film Festival on 31 October 2024.  More than 1500 people saw the film across three sold-out screenings, and it was awarded the AFF Audience Award for Best Documentary and Sydney Film Festival's Documentary Australia Award. 

Songs Inside is an observational documentary film which follows the story of Singer / Songwriter Nancy Bates and her ground-breaking music program to teach women in prison how to play an instrument and write songs about their experiences of incarceration, in the lead up to a performance with Adelaide Symphony Orchestra inside the prison, with other 200 inmates, staff and special guests. The documentary aims to showcase how music can be a powerful tool for healing and transformation. 

Singer-songwriter Nancy Bates is a Barkindji song woman, teacher, mentor and activist. She toured extensively with Archie Roach, has performed to sell-out solo shows at the Adelaide Fringe and Adelaide Festival Centre. Nancy is passionate about amplifying the voices of women and addressing systemic injustices.

The award-winning team behind Songs Inside, includes Director/Producer Shalom Almond and Producers Katrina Lucas and Lauren Drewery, with a track record for creating engaging, intimate and socially conscious films. 

Songs Inside explores whether or not music can have the power to change people’s lives, even in the complex world of prison.

The production was supported by the Australian Government - Screen Australia, South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC), Adelaide Film Festival Investment Fund: Minderoo Pictures, Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 

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