On the eve of the DVD release for acclaimed documentary AMERICAN TEEN, director NANETTE BURSTEIN talks to J.I. CUENCA about the rights of passage at high school in America.

Nanette Burstein’s documentary American Teen had its Australian premiere at the Sydney Film Festival last year and consequently enjoyed a successful run in cinemas. It follows five high school kids from Warsaw, Indiana, in their final year of school. There is the jock, the geek, the heartthrob, the princess and the rebel. Burstein, whose previous documentary The Kid Stays In The Picture focused on legendary Paramount producer Bob Evans, won the Best Director title in Sundance for American Teen.

J.I. CUENCA: Why did you choose Warsaw, Indiana, for your film?

NANETTE BURSTEIN: I wanted it to be in a town that only had one high school, because I thought it would be more of a social pressure cooker, and I needed a school that would give me the right access and was excited about the prospect of having a film made there. I chose the Midwest because there is a timelessness and innocence about that part of the country. Often what you see are only West coast or East coast kids; but I picked regular teenagers that were reflective of this country, and these could have been anywhere because the story is not particular to the place. I am trying to show the real American experience to make the movie as universal as possible.

JIC: What type of students were you looking for?

NB: I was looking for kids from different social groups and economic backgrounds that were trying to achieve something that year, to have a story to follow. And I knew the story would be very narrative.

JIC: Of your five characters, Hannah seems the most rebellious.

NB: Yes, she feels like the fish out of the water that will never belong in this place and is convinced that she needs to get out in order to be happy.

JIC: And then there is Colin, the basketball star of the school.

NB: But he also has enormous pressure because he feels he has to succeed on the court to achieve a basketball scholarship that will enable him to go to college. And his father dressing up as Elvis is something you just can’t make up –I mean, you would never write something like that!

JIC: Is life easier for Megan, the popular girl?

NB: Not really, because she is also under pressure, as she has to get into a specific college. And she had gone through a horrible tragedy, so there is a lot going on there, but you understand the roots of her rage.

JIC: One of the most endearing kids is Jake, the geek of the group.

NB: Everyone loves Jake because he is the ultimate underdog. He is very shy and self-conscious, but he also has this unbelievable self-deprecating humor and incredible insight into himself. And his quest for love is very relatable.

JIC: And finally there is Mitch…

NB: Mitch is the guy every girl dreams of dating in high school. He is someone who feels like he needs to please people and wants them to like him, though he also has this secret nerdy side to him, which is why he is attracted to Hannah.

JIC: Which of the five main kids were more comfortable with it all?

NB: Jake and Hannah – the two more underdog students in the film – were more comfortable on camera from the get-go than the others. Maybe it was because they were less popular and self-conscious. So, with them some things took place pretty early, like when Hannah breaks-up with her boyfriend and is crying in front of her friends, which happened in the first month of shooting. I filmed that scene by myself and she was OK with it. But that was unusual, because most of the dramatic moments took place further ahead.

JIC: What did you learn after following the day-to-day lives of these kids?

NB: It made me realize how vulnerable and insecure we are at that age. I went through it, but to watch teenagers as an adult makes you understand better how that experience affects our later years. And I also learned how complicated and treacherous technology is now for teenagers. They are the ones using it the most but are incapable of thinking of the repercussions of their actions, because they have this sense of immortality.

AMERICAN TEEN is released on DVD by Paramount Home Entertainment on Apr 2. Check out what the teens are up to now at www.americanteenthemovie.com

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