Street Smart
After receiving a tribute at MVFF38, prolific filmmaker Catherine Hardwicke (Thirteen, Lords of Dogtown) returns to the festival with her latest directorial effort Street Smart. Co-written by Hardwicke and Nic Sheff, whose 2008 memoir Tweaked inspired Beautiful Boy (MVFF41), the drama draws inspiration from Sheff’s lived experience and Hardwicke’s deep affinity for Venice Beach and the diverse community that calls it home. Desperate to escape her volatile home life, Ali (Isabelle Fuhrman) takes a leap of faith and hops on a cross-country bus to Venice Beach with little more than the clothes on her back and her trusty guitar. With no money and no connections, her prospects are grim until a vivacious band of unhoused young adults take her under their wing. Ali and her friends are no strangers to disappointment and tragedy, but it is their tender companionship and shared moments of joy that shine through in this compassionate and vibrant portrait of unhoused society we rarely get to see onscreen. --Sofia Felino
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