Amy George

Year: 2011

Actors: Gabriel del Castillo Mullally

Duration: 95 min

Thirteen-year-old Jesse is assigned a school project. A photographic self-portrait intended to portray one's self without resorting to literal representation.Jesse lives with his parents, Sabi and Tim, in the lefty, middle class Toronto neighborhood of Riverdale. A quiet and distant only-child with budding artistic aspirations, Jesse is inspired by the assignment to look for excitement and meaning in the world around him.Wielding a newly-acquired camera, Jesse sets out to capture his surroundings, but soon realizes the undramatic nature of his family, neighborhood and existence. Meanwhile, Sabi and Tim find themselves questioning Jesse's developing character as they watch him abandon his childhood personality and mature into an uncommunicative adolescent.Frustrated by his lack of inspiration, Jesse discovers a book in the school library which advises him: "You can never be a real artist until you have made love to a woman." Taking the text at face value and with the encouragement of a family friend, Jesse begins to look for new experiences, both foreign and adult, which leads him to an encounter with his young, female neighbor, Amy. Peering into her window at night, he snaps a quick photograph of her.Days later, the two are inadvertently reunited, allowing Jesse an opportunity to explore his prepubescent fascination with the opposite sex. After a long evening of games, exploration and hypnosis, Jesse awakes with confusion and guilt, unsure whether or not he may have overstepped his boundaries. The question of rape consumes his thoughts and Jesse is left struggling to reconcile his uneasy mind.

Genre: Action   Drama