Afterschool

2008 Drama

Violence and voyeurism lurk beneath the surface of life at an exclusive prep school in this independent drama. Robert (Ezra Miller) is a high school student who has made a hobby out of dulling his senses with violent pornography that he finds on the Internet. While Robert doesn't have many friends, he does have a habit of documenting the habits of his classmates with a digital video camera, and he happens to be on hand when two girls from his class succumb to fatal drug overdoses. As the deaths leave the school's faculty at a lost for what to do and send many of the students into a state of depression and denial, Robert finds himself becoming even more alienated from the world around him. Afterschool was the first feature film from writer and director Antonio Campos, and was screened as part of the "Un Certain Regard" series at the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. more..

Director: Antonio Campos

Starring: Ezra Miller, Jeremy Allen White, Emory Cohen, Michael Stuhlbarg, Addison Timlin

Reviews

  • It's both a supremely controlled exercise in form and tone and an intriguing exploration of the ways new technology intersects with age-old questions of dominance, control and individuality, particularly in the school setting.

    Andrew O'Hehir - Salon.com

    26 April 2013

  • Campos, a cinematic disciple of Stanley Kubrick and latter-period Gus Van Sant, opts to let the movie do the talking for him. The fact that this is a film of few words only adds to its hypnotic, relentless pull.

    Rene Rodriguez - Miami Herald

    26 April 2013

  • Campos (who was 24 when he made this jolting pic) captures the numbing psychic scramble that just might cause the YouTube generation to go morally haywire. Or become filmmakers.

    Lisa Schwarzbaum - Entertainment Weekly

    26 April 2013

  • This is a sophisticated stylistic exercise too rarefied for wide audiences, but earmarked for critical kudos.

    - The Hollywood Reporter

    26 April 2013

  • Afterschool, the almost frighteningly accomplished first feature made by Antonio Campos when he was 24, is high school as horror show.

    J. Hoberman - Village Voice

    26 April 2013

Awards

  • Outstanding Achievement in Casting - Low Budget Feature - Drama/Comedy

    Casting Society of America (2010)

     
  • Antonio Campos

    Gotham Awards (2008)

     
  • Best First Feature

    Independent Spirit Awards (2009)

     
  • Special Jury Prize for Experimental Narrative

    Nashville Film Festival (2009)