DIRECTED BY ROBERT MACHOIAN AND RODRIGO OJEDA-BECK

USA, 2015, Digital, 92 min

There’s nothing more exciting to us at AFS than finding a new movie that shows us things we’ve never seen before on film, which is why GOD BLESS THE CHILD is one of our favorite discoveries of the year. The film begins with a parent inexplicably leaving her five children home alone for the day, with the eldest, a 13-year-old girl, in charge of her four younger brothers, the youngest of whom is still in diapers. As their day unfolds, the everyday dramas, comedies and minor miracles of childhood are laid bare for the camera. A selection of SXSW and New Directors/New Films, the film recently won the top prize at Copenhagen’s CPH:DOX, a festival known for honoring works that challenge traditional boundaries of non-fiction.