Synopsis: THE BOX is a hybrid short film that combines documentary, stop-motion animation, and cinematic vignettes to immerse our audience in the world of solitary confinement. We interview three people who have spent a combined 9 years in solitary, one of whom is of the two directors of the film, James Burns. All three stories are told at the same time and progressively build onto one another, each subject telling a different chapter from the same book. This is a story about the value of human connection and a group of survivors who lost everything but found light in the darkness. We see how they ended up in solitary, how that experience brought them to the darkest place imaginable, and how they struggled against all odds to find freedom and a meaningful life on the outside.

Director's Bio: James Burns is an award-winning director and producer whose approach to storytelling is both character-driven and conceptual. Shal Ngo is a Vietnamese-American filmmaker who has trouble defining himself in two sentences. He writes and directs science fiction, stop-motion animation, and documentary films.