American Promise (2013)

Directed by

Michèle Stephenson, Joe Brewster

Genre

documentary film

Country

United States

Runtime

2h 15m

Rated

12

Rating

6.7 of 10 from 6 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary follows two African-American boys from kindergarten through high school as they attend an elite private school. It shows the challenges their families face with education and expectations over 13 years.

intimateobservationalpoignantthoughtfulpersonalfocusedgrounded

What happens

American Promise is a documentary film spanning 13 years from directors Joe Brewster and Michèle Stephenson. The film captures the stories of Brewster and Stephenson's 5-year-old son Idris and his best friend and classmate Seun as these families navigate their way through the rigorous prep-school process and secure admission to the Dalton School. The film is set against the backdrop of a persistent educational achievement gap that dramatically affects African-American boys at all socioeconomic levels across the country. The film's focus shifted based on the experiences that Idris and Seun faced while at Dalton. American Promise premiered at the 2013 Sundance Film Festival, where it won a special jury award. The filmmakers also launched a national campaign at Sundance to help raise $100,000 and 100,000 volunteer hours for Big Brothers Big Sisters of America Mentoring Brothers in Action program. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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