30 January 2025 :

January 29, 2025 - Texas. Death Penalty Documentary Nominated for Academy Award
“I am Ready, Warden”, a documentary about Texas death row prisoner John Henry Ramirez, was announced as a nominee for Best Documentary Short at the 2025 Academy Awards. The film tells the story of the days leading up to Mr. Ramirez’s 2022 execution. It features interviews with Mr. Ramirez and his son, Israel, as well as Nueces County District Attorney Mark Gonzalez, who opposes the death penalty and sought to halt Mr. Ramirez’s execution. It also centers the experience of Aaron Castro, the son of Pablo Castro, who was killed by Mr. Ramirez.
Director Smriti Mundhra said she hoped the documentary would test “our capacity for forgiveness and … redemption.” Ms. Mundhra was inspired to create the film after reading coverage of the case by journalist Keri Blakinger. Ms. Blakinger said, “I knew that one of the things that attracted me to this case was the opportunity to explore the idea of redemption in a case where the condemned is unequivocally guilty. A disproportionate amount of death row coverage focuses on innocence cases, even though I think cases where the condemned is guilty raise much more nuanced moral quandaries.” She was particularly grateful for Mr. Castro’s participation, saying “It gave us the chance to interrogate the death penalty’s promise of closure in a way I’ve never been able to in print.”
"I am Ready, Warden" is available to stream on Paramount+.

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-penalty-documentary-nominated-for-academy-award