Foster Boy
Michael Trainer is a lawyer at the center of a trial in which a for-profit Foster care agency puts a known sex offender into the same foster home as his young client Jamal, with catastrophic results. Michael, a successful litigator with a long career in protecting corporate clients, has been blinded from recognizing the real damage they can cause. He wants nothing to do with Jamal's case until a Judge forces him to accept it. Initially he sees Jamal as a thuggish African American youth trying to get a piece of corporate profits. But when Jamal refuses to settle the case for any amount of money, Michael begins his representation in earnest. As their work together reveals the horrifying depth of the corrupt and abusive for-profit Foster care agency, Michael is transformed from reluctant defender to fierce warrior in the battle for justice.
About the Director/Writer:
Born in Vientiane, Laos, and growing up outside of Washington D.C., Van Ditthavong is an award-winning still photographer whose photography work has been commissioned by Newsweek, AARP, Texas Monthly, Psychology Today, Men’s Health, American Way and other national magazines. Van’s short films have screened at the Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, The Independent Filmmakers Showcase, The Atlanta Shortsfest, and The Pasadena International Film Festival. He has taught at the New York Film Academy (Los Angeles) and UCLA Extension – where he received the 2015 Outstanding Instructor of the Year honor for the Visual Arts Department. Sleeping In Plastic is his debut feature film.
Cast & Crew:
Director: Youssef Delara
Screenwriter: Jay Paul Deratany
Cast: Matthew Modine, Louis Gossett Jr., Shane Paul McGhie, Julie Benz, Evan Handler
Producer: Jay Paul Deratany, Peter Samuelson, Andrew Sugerman, Anne Marie MacKay
Executive Producer: Shaquille O'Neal, Mary Beth O'Connor, The Lipari Family, Max Adler, Danny Mooney
Cinematographer: Ben Kufrin
Editor: Andrew Drazek
Composer: Kathryn Bostic
Previous Festivals:
Nashville Film Festival, International Black Film Festival (Best of Fest, Best Narrative Feature), Woodstock Film Festival (Carpe Diem Award), Heartland International Film Festival, Tryon International Film Festival (Humanitarian Award, Best Narrative Feature), West Texas Film Festival, Cinesol
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