When the producers wanted to shoot interviews outdoors in the poorer estates of the clients that Pro Bono SG serve, senior producer Tang Hui Huan said, lawyers Sadhana, 37, and Pramnath, 36, “very quickly gave us ideas on where to shoot”.
“I realised they’d spent so much time walking these neighbourhoods to meet their clients, that they know these places back to front.”
The community law centres, where they hold walk-in legal clinics, may look makeshift and scrappy (think: Repurposed karaoke booth for making court calls).
But the staff are “keen on being as close to the ground as possible”, said producer Liew Zhi Xin, and are “guided by a principled desire to help everyone, even those accused of the most heinous crimes, to get their fair day in court”.
Take the infamous case of the toddler whose burnt remains were found in a pot at home; her pro bono lawyers got public flak for defending the child’s mother.
Beyond these lawyers’ belief that everyone should have access to justice, the producers hope viewers will come away with something else important: No matter your area of expertise, “find the gaps in your community, and think of how you can fill them”.
Yvonne Lim
Deputy Chief Editor, CNA Insider (Growth)
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