David Felix Sutcliffe
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FOR VENIDA, FOR KELIEF

Kalief Browder’s tale comes into full focus when his life and his mother’s, Venida Brodnax Browder, are tragically upended following years of malintent from the justice system. This is not a retelling of Kalief's case. Instead, Venida’s poems anchor a temporal odyssey as they are weaved through archival discovery and contemporary political movements to honor the Browders’ legacy within their community and beyond. The piece reveals how an individual’s life — and afterlife — can transcend boundaries to ignite social and cultural change once thought unattainable.

FOR VENIDA, FOR KALIEF

Director, Producer & Cinematographer - Sisa Bueno

Role: Producer

World Premiere - Tribeca Film Festival

For Venida, For Kalief debuts the poetry of Venida Brodnax Browder, the late mother of Kalief Browder, whose traumatic incarceration as a teenager ignited national outcry. Woven with Venida’s own words, the film is a lyrical meditation on the toll of incarceration, and the power of collective resistance. Blending vérité, archival, and poetic interludes, the film explores the impact of trauma and the radical potential of healing, and the ripple effects of Kalief's courage. It charts the emotional and political journey to transform Rikers Island from a symbol of systemic violence into a site of renewal, offering a new language for understanding the intersections of mental health, incarceration, and justice.

Director: Sisa Bueno

Producers: Sisa Bueno, David Felix Sutcliffe, Paola Gadala-Maria, Jasmine Mans

Cinematographer: Sisa Bueno

Editors: Kristan Sprague, Daniel Chavez Ontiveros

Poetry by Venida Brodnax Browder

Narrator: Jasmine Mans

Website: www.forvenidaforkalief.com