''Jessie's Dad'' is a 2011

documentary film A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

Boaz Dvir Boaz Dvir (; born June 23, 1967) is an Israeli-American professor, journalist, and filmmaker. His main work includes documentaries, most recently '' Class of Her Own, Jessie's Dad'', and '' A Wing and a Prayer''. Background Filmmaker and Penn ...

. The film tells the story of Mark Lunsford, and his transformation from an uneducated truck driver to an activist after the murder of his daughter Jessica by a convicted

sex offender A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a Sex and the law, sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convi ...

. As of June 2016, the film is currently on Hulu, available to the public.

Background

Before his daughter's murder, the tattooed, long-haired Harley rider drove a dump truck, lived with his church-going parents and spent most of his free time with his daughter. Jessie, as everyone in the small West Florida town of Homosassa called her, loved going to karaoke nights with her dad and playing outside in their mobile-home neighborhood. On February 24, 2005,

John Couey John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second Ep ...

broke into Jessie's bedroom and took her across the street to his trailer. He raped her, buried her alive, smothering her. After his daughter's body was discovered, Lunsford embarked on a journey to pass

Jessica's Law Jessica's Law is the informal name given to a 2005 Florida law, as well as laws in several other states, designed to protect potential victims and reduce a sexual offender's ability to re-offend which includes a mandatory minimum sentence of 2 ...

around the country. It toughens penalties against

sex offenders A sex offender (sexual offender, sex abuser, or sexual abuser) is a person who has committed a sex crime. What constitutes a sex crime differs by culture and legal jurisdiction. The majority of convicted sex offenders have convictions for crime ...

. So far, Lunsford has convinced 46

states State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

to pass it.

The film

The hour-long documentary follows Lunsford as he visits

Capitol Hill Capitol Hill is a neighborhoods in Washington, D.C., neighborhood in Washington, D.C., located in both the Northeast, Washington, D.C., Northeast and Southeast, Washington, D.C., Southeast quadrants. It is bounded by 14th Street SE & NE, F S ...

and state capitols to urge

lawmakers A legislator, or lawmaker, is a person who writes and passes laws, especially someone who is a member of a legislature. Legislators are often elected by the people, but they can be appointed, or hereditary. Legislatures may be supra-natio ...

to increase penalties for persons convicted of offenses against children. The film offers a behind-the-scenes look at a single father haunted by the knowledge that a

held his daughter within earshot for three days. ''Jessie's Dad'' was initially funded by a Carole Fielding Production Grant, along with a University of Florida research grant. Mark Lunsford, his parents and several other members of his family attended the 2008 screening of Jessie's Dad at the University of Florida. Lunsford and the film received two standing ovations from a packed theater. Green Apple Entertainment is distributing Jessie's Dad, which is available from iTunes and Amazon, where it has received an average rating of 5 (the highest possible). Lifetime and

Investigation Discovery Investigation Discovery (stylized and branded on-air as ID since 2008) is an American multinational pay television network dedicated to true crime documentaries, similar to corporate sibling HLN. It is owned by Warner Bros. Discovery's netw ...

have used a substantial amount of Jessie's Dad footage in their programs. The film has screened in several film festivals, where it has won top prizes, and prestigious venues, including

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

's satellite campus in Paris. Dvir reflected on the film years later in an article in the ''Centre Daily Times:'' "As a documentary filmmaker, I change my mind about societal issues related to my projects much like kids experience growth — I only notice it months, sometimes years, later. Directing and producing "Jessie's Dad" ..altered my point of view on mandatory sentencing."

Awards

* Best Documentary at the 2011 ITN Distribution Film and New Media Festival * Best Florida Film at the 2011 Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival * Direct Cinema Outstanding Documentary Award * CINE Special Jury Award * Finalist for the

International Documentary Association International Documentary Association (IDA), founded in 1982, is a non-profit 501(c)(3) that promotes nonfiction filmmakers, and is dedicated to increasing public awareness for the documentary genre. Their major program areas are: Advocacy, Film ...

's David L. Wolper Award * Carole Fielding Production Grant

References

External links

*
UF Graduate Stirs Discussion with "Jessie's Dad"

Slain Girl's Dad To Preview Documentary: 'Jessie's Dad'

Lunsford to attend documentary premiere

Lunsford set to attend documentaries

UF documentary students win award, grant for "Jessie's Dad"

Documenting the Documentary
{{Webarchive, url=https://archive.today/20130223175846/http://alligator.org/articles/2007/11/30/news/photo/photostory1.txt , date=2013-02-23 Documentary films about child abuse Documentary films about crime in the United States American documentary films 2011 films 2011 documentary films Films directed by Boaz Dvir Documentary films about law in the United States 2010s English-language films 2010s American films English-language documentary films