Petaluma teen’s film on Polly Klaas’ legacy attracts nationwide interest

Thirteen-year-old India Mitchell only learned of Polly Klaas’ story a year or two ago through a social media course she took at Kenilworth Junior High School in Petaluma.

With the marking of the 30th anniversary of Klaas’ kidnapping and killing this past October, India, who is an aspiring filmmaker, dove into the case for her entry into the Santa Rosa Junior College’s Student Film Festival on April 5.

The teen’s original plan had been to just retell the circumstances of Klaas’ story but when she finished, she realized her entry went a step further and emphasized the child safety and awareness concerns that arose from the case.

India titled her five-minute short film about Polly Klaas, “Guiding Light.”

“I want the public to know that the legacy, her legacy, lives on even 30 years later and she is still protecting children from going missing,” Mitchell said Wednesday.

“Guiding Light” was a Best of the Fest award recipient at the junior college event, an event coordinator confirmed.

Now available on YouTube, her film is also being shown at film festivals across the country, including the Rogers Short Film Festival in Rogers, Arkansas and the ARCLight Student Film Festival in Arlington Heights, Illinois.

Locally, it will next be shown today during AVFest in Healdsburg.

The film tells the story of Klaas’ kidnapping by Richard Allen Davis, who took the 12-year-old from her Petaluma home during a slumber party on Oct. 1, 1993.

In the days that followed, hundreds of volunteers searched for her as nationwide attention focused on Petaluma.

Davis, who had previous criminal convictions, was arrested and convicted of Klaas’ killing and kidnapping. He is on death row at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center in San Quentin.

As a result of her case, California enacted its “three strikes” law, which adds life in prison as a penalty for anyone convicted of a violent felony if their history included two serious violent crimes.

The Polly Klaas Foundation was established to promote child safety and advocate for young crime victims. Founded by Petaluma residents, it has helped 10,000 families reunite with children and continues to operate.

Klaas’ father later launched his own organization, the KlaasKids Foundation. Last year, he announced it would wind down.

India Mitchell began working on short films when she started the sixth grade and she was 12 years old when she began working on her latest piece.

Mostly using an iPhone and the iMovie app, she shot relevant locations such as Polly Klaas’ home and San Quentin, its outer walls making a brief appearance in her film.

Three key players in the case and trial were interviewed: Sonoma County Assistant District Attorney Greg Jacobs, former Petaluma Police Chief Patrick Parks and defense attorney Barry Collins with the Sonoma County Public Defender’s Office.

Jacobs agreed that younger generations are less familiar with the Polly Klaas case, noting he recently offered to share a stroy about the case with students and they showed no interest.

He was surprised India wanted to discuss the case in 2023 and said Mitchell did a good job condensing a three-year odyssey into a “very powerful message.”

“India was very, what’s the word, she had a plan,” Jacobs said. “She knew what she wanted to do and asked very good questions and it was very enjoyable.”

Parks said it’s necessary for today’s youth to understand what happened and he’s glad Mitchell, at the age of 12, was able to do something for her peers.

“For a 12-year-old girl to put this together was quite an accomplishment,” he said.

It took about four or five months for Mitchell to complete her short film.

She was only vaguely familiar with the Polly Klaas case until last year and finally understood the magnitude of the case as production on her film progressed.

The disappearance and killing especially resonated with India because Polly Klass was her age at the time she was taken from her bedroom.

“The overall experience, I feel was pretty enlightening and I definitely learned a lot about her case. And I feel it too. I’m a 13 year old girl living in the same town 30 years later,” she said.

Mitchell said she hopes her film contributes to raising awareness about keeping children safe. She stressed the Polly Klaas Foundation, which has helped find thousands of missing children, was one of the most important things to come out of her case.

“It proved her legacy is large and saved a lot of lives,” Mitchell said.

Parks agreed.

“It changed how business is done and there’s no doubt countless lives have been changed and saved because of Polly’s legacy,” he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Colin Atagi at colin.atagi@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @colin_atagi