Winner! 2020 Sundance Film Festival "U.S. Grand Jury Prize: Documentary"

The sensational winner of the Grand Jury Prize for documentary at this year's Sundance Film Festival, Boys State is a wildly entertaining and continually revealing immersion into a week-long annual program in which a thousand Texas high school seniors gather for an elaborate mock exercise: building their own state government. Filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine closely track the escalating tensions that arise within a particularly riveting gubernatorial race, training their cameras on unforgettable teenagers like Ben, a Reagan-loving arch-conservative who brims with confidence despite personal setbacks, and Steven, a progressive-minded child of Mexican immigrants who stands by his convictions amidst the sea of red. In the process, they have created a complex portrait of contemporary American masculinity, as well as a microcosm of our often dispiriting national political divisions that nevertheless manages to plant seeds of hope. An Apple Original Films and A24 release. 

Directed and Produced by Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss

The screening of Boys State will be made available online through the Eventive streaming platform. The Q&A will immediately follow the screening on the same platform. Please refer to the instructions below to receive your free screening and Q&A link:

1. RSVP with A24 for the screening and Q&A no later than 24 hours prior to the screening.

2. Viewers will receive a screening link from noreply@eventive.org. This initial email will invite viewers to "Accept your stream of “BOYS STATE.”  After clicking "Accept," viewers will be asked to enter their name, email address and a password of their choosing.  

3. Approximately 10 minutes prior to the start of the screening, viewers will receive a reminder email noting "Your BOYS STATE pre-order is ready," with a direct link to the screening.

4. The film and Q&A have a limited three-hour viewing window beginning at 8:00 pm and ending at 11:00 pm on Thursday, October 15, 2020.

Amanda McBaine | Director | Producer:  Amanda McBaine is a Sundance Award-winning producer making her feature directing debut with Boys State. As a producer, her films include The Overnighters, The Bandit, Speedo and Ghosts of Attica. Along with her husband and creative partner Jesse Moss, she is a partner in Mile End Films, a San Francisco-based production company.

Jesse Moss | Director | Producer | Cinematographer:  Jesse Moss is an acclaimed documentary filmmaker. His films include The Overnighters (Sundance Special Jury Prize for Intuitive Filmmaking), recognized by many critics as the top documentary of 2014; The Bandit; Full Battle Rattle (SXSW Special Jury Prize); Speedo: A Demolition Derby Love Story; and Con Man. His recent work includes, in collaboration with Alex Gibney’s Jigsaw Productions, the “Payday” episode of the Netflix series “Dirty Money,” and “The Family,” a five-part series, also for Netflix, about an enigmatic and influential Christian organization, based on Jeff Sharlet’s best-selling book. His recent short film “La Boca Del Lobo” for the New York Times Op Doc series, about the impact of immigration-related arrests on the Hispanic community in Atlanta, marked his first collaboration with Concordia Studio. As a producer, his films include Gay Chorus Deep South (2019 Tribeca Audience Award) and William Kunstler: Disturbing the Universe (Sundance 2010). He frequently works with his wife and co-conspirator Amanda McBaine.

Cosponsored by the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication and OSPIRG Students

An Apple Original Films and A24 Release 
Photos Courtesy of Apple