Apple and its partner film studio A24 have acquired the rights to "Boys State" a political coming-of-age documentary that examines the health of American democracy, reports The Hollywood Reporter.
Apple is said to have paid $10 million for the documentary, which was directed by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine. Laurene Powell Jobs, Steve Jobs' widow, served as an executive producer on the project.
The film features an experiment in which 1,000 17-year-old boys from across Texas gather together to build a representative government from the ground up, reproducing some of democracy's worst principles and flaws.
Strap up your saddle and get ready for a wild ride. Boys State is a political coming-of-age story, examining the health of American democracy through an unusual experiment: a thousand 17-year-old boys from across the state of Texas gather together to build a representative government from the ground up. High-minded ideals collide with low-down dirty tricks as four boys of diverse backgrounds and political views navigate the challenges of organizing political parties, shaping consensus, and campaigning for the highest office at Texas Boys State--governor.
Documenting impeachment threats, dramatic debates, underdog victories, and even nefarious internet memes, filmmakers Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine (The Overnighters, 2014 Sundance Film Festival) chart the dramatic twists and turns of these intersecting stories to reveal profound truths about our political choices and civic obligations and to remind us, ultimately, that democracy is not a spectator sport. With cunning insight that will have audiences buzzing, Boys State holds a mirror up to our divided country. This is a film for the ages in every sense of the term.
Prior to being purchased by Apple, the documentary premiered on January 24 at the Sundance Film Festival.
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Top Rated Comments
- Benjamin Franklin
Boys State (like Girls State) is a decades-old program, run by the American Legion in states across the country, intending to give bright high school kids a crash course in the American political system.
That description is from the Hollywood Reporter review:
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/review/boys-state-review-1272560