Vents MagaZine Music and Entertainment Magazine
Related Articles
Noted composer duo Mark Batson and Chris Hanebutt have joined forces to score HBO’s original documentary The Alabama Solution, debuting nationwide tonight at 10 p.m. ET / 8 p.m. PT on HBO and streaming on HBO Max. The film, which premiered to critical acclaim at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, features an original score by Batson and Hanebutt, who are known for crafting genre-blending scores across film and television.
Directed and produced by Emmy Award-winning filmmaker Andrew Jarecki (The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst, Parts One and Two; Oscar®-nominated Capturing the Friedmans) and Charlotte Kaufman (producer, The Jinx: Part Two), The Alabama Solution is a 2025 American documentary that exposes corruption, violence and slave-like labor conditions within Alabama’s prison system through footage filmed by incarcerated men using contraband phones.
Batson says: “Working closely with Chris, alongside Andrew Jarecki, Charlotte Kaufman and Sue Jacobs to develop the sonic landscape for The Alabama Solution, has been one of the most impactful experiences of my life. Shaping the sound of these heroes – men who forged under the most oppressive conditions imaginable – was both an emotional and extraordinary challenge. I only hope that their story helps audiences take a deeper look at the American prison system and inspires a real commitment to justice and reform.”
Hanebutt adds: “‘The Alabama Solution’ is by far the most important and impactful project I’ve ever been a part of. Collaborating with directors Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman, alongside my composing partner Mark Batson, was an absolute honor. My hope is that the stories of the men and their families featured in this film will move others in the same way it has moved me. Change begins with understanding and transparency. God willing, both will happen.”
The film documents a six-year investigation sparked by a chance encounter at a prison revival meeting, revealing a hidden resistance movement and a system in collapse. It serves as a call for accountability and reform, with incarcerated activists using the footage to fuel a class-action lawsuit against the state. Check out the official trailer here.
