Director: Amber Goodwyn, Beverly Brown, Karen Shamy-Smith, Morgan Gage National Film Board of Canada. 2000. $39.95 Length: 78 minutes Audience: Secondary, Post-Secondary Topics: film-making
Barry's Bulletin review:
Four girls at a Montreal alternative high school are encouraged to make films about subjects that are important to their lives. The results reveal interesting autobiographical background and a real sense of teen sensibility - not to mention insights into the young filmmakers' artistic choices. Their subject matter is diverse: it includes critiquing mainstream education; exploring the independent music scene; engaging in the scary practice of self-mutilation and exploring the underground punk culture. The first expresses the filmmaker's conviction that conventional schooling impedes her personal growth. Others include attempts to define "punk," and the scary fascination of a girl explaining her motivation for self-mutilation. The subject matter is guaranteed to interest young people, as is the special school context for this project. There's nothing slick about this production; rather, it is its sense of authenticity that makes it so memorable.
Four girls at a Montreal alternative high school are encouraged to make films about subjects that are important to their lives. The results reveal interesting autobiographical background and a real sense of teen sensibility - not to mention insights into the young filmmakers' artistic choices. Their subject matter is diverse: it includes critiquing mainstream education; exploring the independent music scene; engaging in the scary practice of self-mutilation and exploring the underground punk culture. The first expresses the filmmaker's conviction that conventional schooling impedes her personal growth. Others include attempts to define "punk," and the scary fascination of a girl explaining her motivation for self-mutilation. The subject matter is guaranteed to interest young people, as is the special school context for this project. There's nothing slick about this production; rather, it is its sense of authenticity that makes it so memorable.