In an Iranian youth prison, a group of teenage girls are serving long sentences for the killing of a violent father, husband or other male member of the family. The filmmaker Mehrdad Oskouei has formed an unusual relationship with the young prisoners, and he listens to their honest conversations, playful interactions and personal stories. Occasionally, he even hands the camera to the young women themselves. The results are both unexpected, moving and brutally honest. Why did they do what they did? 'Sunless Shadows' is just as much about the position of women in the society outside as it is about life behind the prison walls.