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October Country is a beautifully rendered portrait of an American family struggling for stability while haunted by the ghosts of war, teen pregnancy, foster care, and child abuse.

Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for best U.S. Documentary Feature at the American Film Institute’s Silver Docs Festival, October Country is a beautifully rendered portrait of an American family struggling for stability. Dottie, matriarch of the upstate New York family, says it all in the opening sequence: “If you don’t have family, you don’t have anything.” The phrase echoes as a story rife with war trauma, teenage pregnancy, domestic and sexual abuse, and foster care achingly unfolds. Portland filmmakers Palmieri and Mosher examine intimately the forces that unsettle the working poor and the violence that lurks beneath the surface of American life. With rich visual metaphors that float through multiple storylines, they paint a portrait of a family that is unique, but also sadly representative of the struggles of many.

First Feature Film.

83 Minutes     Digital    

Interests: New Directors, Documentary Views.