Their Eyes Were Watching God

Alike is seventeen, a poet in Brooklyn, and slowly telling herself she is a lesbian. At home, her mother watches her closely and her father looks away, while at school she tries to figure out who she can be. Rees expanded her own short film into a debut about faith, family and the work of coming out while still living at home.

Why it’s here: It's a film about a teen who writes her way into herself. What's punk is that nobody rescues Alike except Alike and a poem. What's pedagogical is how closely it watches a family that loves her and can't cope. Pairs with Funny Boy, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe and The Poet X. Note: R-rated; homophobic harassment and a violent scene between mother and daughter; older teens and adults. English.

Ana is a Mexican-American teenager in East Los Angeles, accepted to Columbia on a scholarship, working a summer in her sister's tiny dress factory. Her mother wants her at home. Her boss wants the order done by Friday. The film follows a hot summer of sewing, body shame and a girl deciding whether to go.

Why it’s here: It's a film about a first-generation teen and a garment workshop that the American Dream forgot. What's punk is that a sweatshop scene becomes a scene of women refusing to be ashamed of their bodies. What's pedagogical is how clearly it shows what a family gives up to send one kid out the door. Pairs with Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers' Strike of 1909, The Circuit and Esperanza Rising. Note: PG-13; some nudity, frank talk about bodies and sex; set in 2000s LA, English and Spanish.