UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — “Class of Her Own,” a Penn State faculty member's award-winning documentary, is set for its West Coast premiere on April 13 at the 10th LA Black Film Festival.
Directed and produced by Boaz Dvir, an associate professor in the Donald P. Bellisario College Communications, the 86-minute film will screen as an official selection at 2 p.m. on April 13 at The Actors Company’s Let Live Theater in Los Angeles.
“Class of Her Own,” which tells the story of Gloria Jean Merriex’s transformation into a trailblazing teacher who used hip hop and dance to lead her high-need school from an F to an A on Florida’s standardized state test, has screened as an official selection at 15 film festivals around the world. A finalist for multiple awards, it won Best Documentary Feature at the Windsor International Black Film Festival in Canada, Best Teacher Film at the Helsinki Education Film Festival International in Finland and, most recently, Best Documentary Feature at the Denver Indie Film Festival.
In a recent review posted on its website, the Copenhagen Headliner Film Festival noted that “Class of Her Own” possesses “heart and soul and puts the focus where it belongs ... Ms. Merrix and her unconventional use of music in her classes — for teaching, healing and building communities.”
“The film shines a light on solutions rather than problems,” said Dvir, whose films have aired and streamed on PBS, Hulu, The New York Times and other major platforms. “As specific as these solutions may be, they offer timely, universal lessons.”
Amazon Prime offers “Class of Her Own” for free to its more than 180 millions subscribers in America. The film is also available for a fee on Apple TV, Comcast, Google Play and YouTube.
Peter Greene of Forbes magazine called the documentary a “real-life mirror of [ABC sitcom] Abbott Elementary.” In September, “Class of Her Own” will screen as an official selection at the Hollywood Florida Film Festival.