Watch the official trailer for Doula: A True Crime.
CBC today released the official trailer for DOULA: A TRUE CRIME, a gripping new three-part documentary series from Muse Entertainment. Written and directed by acclaimed filmmaker Nathalie Bibeau (The Unsolved Murder of Beverly Lynn Smith), the series features the first-ever interview with Kaitlyn Braun, the Brantford, Ont., woman at the centre of an extraordinary case involving more than 40 doulas. All three episodes will be available to stream free on CBC Gem beginning Wednesday, October 7, with episodes airing weekly at 8 p.m. (8:30 NT) on CBC. .
Over the course of nine months in 2022, 24-year-old Kaitlyn Braun reached out to more than 40 doulas with the same devastating story: she had been sexually assaulted and was in her third trimester, carrying a stillborn child.
The doulas responded with unwavering empathy, stepping in without hesitation, many offering their services pro bono. Some supported her from a distance through phone and video calls. Others showed up in person, providing round-the-clock support and, in some cases, bearing witness to an excruciating labour. Except that, over time, the narrative began to fracture. As the doulas began to question themselves and their experiences, they uncovered something far more complex.
What followed was a real-life saga almost impossible to believe: a desperate search for answers, a campaign to get the attention of authorities, a TikTok counter-offensive and, ultimately, 53 criminal charges.
With unparalleled access to all sides of the story, including extensive interviews and conversations with Braun herself, DOULA: A TRUE CRIME goes beyond the sensational headlines to examine empathy and the controversial question of its limitations. Beginning in Episode 2, Braun breaks her silence, taking audiences inside a story that evolves from what happened? to how could this happen? and ultimately, why?
At the heart of the series are the doulas and the radical empathy their profession demands. Trauma-informed caregivers whose work is rooted in believing, protecting and supporting vulnerable women, they were drawn into Braun's life through an instinct to care for someone presenting as traumatized, frightened and alone. The series explores what happens when that instinct is exploited — and asks whether compassion can exist without boundaries.
“Everyone knew what Kaitlyn Braun had done. I wanted to understand why,” said Nathalie Bibeau, writer, director and producer of Doula: A True Crime. “The deeper I went, the less the story yielded to easy conclusions. Kaitlyn’s deception played on empathy, and the harm it caused was real. But the very thing that made the harm possible was also what I needed to understand her. I’m drawn to the places where human behaviour resists a clean moral frame. And this story lives in one of those places – where empathy doesn’t get in the way of truth, but brings us closer to it.”
“Thanks to Nathalie’s perceptive filmmaking, Doula: A True Crime will offer audiences a nuanced look at this high-profile case that deepens their understanding of what took place, while sparking new conversations,” said Jennifer Dettman, Executive Director, Unscripted Content, CBC.
The three-part series unfolds through intimate testimony, interviews and phone calls with Braun, participation from the doulas and Brantford Police, and a cinematic visual and soundscape that immerses audiences in the uncertainty experienced by the people at the centre of the story. Rather than settling on one diagnosis or simple explanation for Braun's behaviour, the series explores loneliness, mental health, identity, sexuality, shame and a profound need for connection without suggesting that any of them excuse the harm caused.
A CBC original series, Doula: A True Crime is produced by Muse Entertainment . The series is written, directed and produced by Nathalie Bibeau. Executive Producers for Muse Entertainment are Jonas Prupas and Courtney Dobbins. For CBC, Sally Catto is General Manager, Entertainment, Jennifer Dettman is Executive Director of Unscripted Content, and Michelle McCree is Senior Director and Commissioning Editor of Documentary. Boat Rocker Studios handles international distribution outside of Canada.
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About CBC/Radio-Canada
CBC/Radio-Canada is Canada's national public broadcaster. Through our mandate to inform, enlighten and entertain, we play a central role in strengthening Canadian culture. As Canada's trusted news source, we offer a uniquely Canadian perspective on news, current affairs and world affairs. Our distinctively homegrown entertainment and sports programming draws audiences from across the country. Deeply rooted in communities, CBC/Radio-Canada offers diverse content in English, French and eight Indigenous languages: Dëne Sųłıné, Dene Kǝdǝ́, Dene Zhatıé, Eastern Cree, Dinjii Zhuʼ Ginjik, Inuktitut, Inuvialuktun and Tłı̨chǫ. We also deliver content in Spanish, Arabic, Chinese, Punjabi and Tagalog, as well as both official languages, through Radio Canada International (RCI). We are leading the transformation to meet the needs of Canadians in a digital world.
Muse Entertainment is one of Canada's leading independent content studios, developing, producing and financing premium scripted, unscripted and documentary programming for audiences around the world. Founded in 1998, the Canadian-owned company has built a reputation for ambitious storytelling, creative excellence and trusted partnerships with broadcasters, streamers, publishers and rights holders across North America and internationally.
Over nearly three decades, Muse has produced hundreds of hours of acclaimed programming, including a recently expanded slate of premium documentaries and factual programming that includes Nose Deep (Bell Media, Sky UK, Abacus), Doula: A True Crime (CBC), Running Smoke (CBC), Lost Boy (NFB, CBC) and Stress Test (TVO, Telus). Landmark scripted series and event productions include Hot Frosty (Netflix [worldwide]), The Family Next Door (ABC Australia, CBC Canada, AMC Networks U.S., Abacus), Sullivan’s Crossing (Bell Media, CW, Fremantle, Netflix), and The Kennedys (History Television Canada, Reelz U.S.). Headquartered in Montreal, Canada, Muse Entertainment has operations in Toronto, Vancouver and Los Angeles. muse.ca
