Directed by Luke Meyer | USA | 2015 | Documentary | 92 mins
Film Source: SeeThink Films
Sponsored by Lorna-Kay Peel
Post-screening discussion led by director Luke Meyer via skype
VTIFF FOR SCHOOLS is sponsored by the John M Bissell Foundation and by Jane Kramer
For information about bringing student groups to the festival or to reserve a block of tickets at a special group rate, email seth@vtiff.org
A few years ago, videos of three pre-teen boys from Brooklyn performing raucous heavy metal music in Times Square went viral, with some of the clips garnering over a million views, making the young musicians social media sensations. Managers, agents, and record companies soon came calling. Luke Meyer’s documentary picks up just before Sony Records offers an astonishing $1.8 million contract. The film follows the fledgling band Unlocking the Truth – Malcolm Brickhouse, Jarad Dawkins, and Alec Atkins – as they learn how to navigate the ins and outs, tensions and triumphs, exciting highs and boring lows of building a career, creating a body of music, and breaking into an industry that views them as outsiders. All while trying to just be kids! The boys struggle with both the adult demands their new fame brings and the usual challenges any teenagers face. As Malcolm says at one point, “I’m too young for responsibility.”