Where to watch

Award Winner, Human Rights, Women + Director

Baby Doe

A Fiscally Sponsored Project

Director:

Jessica Earnshaw, Holly Meehl Chapman, Geralyn Dreyfous:

2025
100 minutes

30 years ago, Gail Ritchey, a young woman from a conservative Christian community in rural Ohio, gave birth alone and left her newborn in the woods. Now a mother of three, her quiet suburban life is shattered when DNA evidence links her to “Geauga’s Child,” and she is arrested for murder – despite saying the baby was stillborn. Facing a life sentence, Gail leans on her family for support as she confronts the weight of societal and religious pressures. Directed by Jessica Earnshaw (Jacinta), BABY DOE cuts through the headlines to uncover the human complexity of Gail’s case – examining the intersection of women’s health, justice, and the outside forces that continue to shape stories like hers.

Awards

  • 2025 Cleveland International Film Festival Global Health Competition Winner

 

Official Selections

  • 2025 South By Southwest
  • 2025 IFF Boston
  • 2025 MKE Film Festival
  • 2025 Seattle International Film Festival