Hamilton chronicles two summer days in the life of a young family: Lena, 17, and Joe, 20, two recent and accidental parents residing in a diverse, suburban neighborhood in northeast Baltimore City. The structure of Hamilton is simple and solid, meditative, pared-down, in order to avoid narrative conventions that distort conflict, restrict story to plot, and over-simplify life. Initially conceived as a silent picture, Hamilton takes place over a weekend in a condensed window that facilitates the examination of detail, gesture, time, and movement, and allows for the cultivation and interpretation of things underlying. We developed this film in Baltimore because it is home and because there is great beauty in the neighborhood during the summer months: the long days, the sun, the speed of the heat, the way it hangs humid above the trees and the pavement, the sounds of birds and insects, automobiles and lawnmowers; here, summer is a palpable action, detailed in the color of night, the color of skin, and the combination of water and sky: we want to see this action move on film.

Forms: Narrative Fiction, Feature
Genres: Family, Drama, Independent, Reality, Art
Niches: Youth/Teen