Before her breakthrough The Rider and Golden Lion-winning Nomadland, Chloé Zhao came to prominence with her similarly beautiful and melancholic first feature. A portrait of life on the fringes of American society, Songs My Brothers Taught Me is impressively brought to life by its nonprofessional actors.
High school senior Johnny is about to leave the Pine Ridge Reservation when his rodeo-cowboy father suddenly dies. Reluctant to leave his 13-year-old sister behind, Johnny must face an inner conflict standing in the way of his departure, which leads both of them to rediscover the meaning of home.
Reviews
"I can’t believe it’s taken me this long to see it: some derivative, Malickian touches, yes, but like her other films, it’s a deeply intelligent and sympathetic rendering of real-life situations, using nonprofessionals playing approximations of themselves." –The Guardian
As part of our See Change initiative, we strive to showcase the work of women and non-binary individuals and their behind-the-scenes involvement in a production.
This film is produced, written, edited, and directed by Chloé Zhao, and produced by Mollye Asher, Nina Yang Bongiovi, and Angela C. Lee.
