I Learn America: A Documentary on the Immigrant Teenage Experience
In a climate where immigrants are often dehumanized, "I Learn America" offers an honest and genuine portrayal of immigrant children navigating a new world. Directed and produced by Jean-Michel Dissard and Gitte Peng, the documentary follows five students from the International High School at Lafayette in Brooklyn, New York, as they navigate the challenges of adolescence while learning a new language and culture.
Synopsis
"I Learn America" documents a school year in the lives of five resilient immigrant teenagers at the International High School at Lafayette as they struggle to adapt to their new land. The International High School is a New York City public school dedicated to serving newly arrived immigrant teenagers, with more than 300 students speaking two-dozen languages from 50 countries. The students strive to master English, adapt to families they haven't seen in years, confront the universal trials of adolescence, and search for a future they can claim as their own.
The Students
The film focuses on five students, each with their own unique story:
SING: A refugee from Myanmar who has recently relocated to Brooklyn, leaving his family behind. He is isolated, angry, and barely speaks English. At school, no one else speaks his language and his poor English prevents him from making friends.
BRANDON: Made the journey from Guatemala to America to reunite with his mother after ten years apart. Crossing the desert and making the perilous journey was easy compared to getting to know his mom again. In America, she has remarried, leaving Brandon to face the difficult task of finding his place in his new family. He is struggling to focus on his schoolwork and becomes distracted as he falls in love with a girl from Honduras.
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ITRAT: Came to America from Pakistan to join her father, whom she barely knew after the passing of her mother. At school, she's vivacious and outspoken. She is also a devout Muslim and fulfills a traditional role at home, cooking and cleaning for her father and brothers.
SANDRA: A tomboy from Poland and a class leader who is also undocumented. Sandra has grown confident in identifying as a girl who dresses like a boy.
JENNIFFER: From the Dominican Republic, her mother and her two sisters left an unsafe family situation in the D.R. for a better life in New York City.
The Filmmakers
"I Learn America" was directed and produced by Jean-Michel Dissard and Gitte Peng.
Jean-Michel Dissard: Originally from France, Jean-Michel migrated to the United States when he was a teenager. He reorients the immigrant narrative in his film, "I Learn America."
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Gitte Peng: An education reform expert who served as Senior Education Policy Advisor in Mayor Bloomberg’s administration, developing and overseeing the City’s school reform policies and initiatives. She has worked at the NYC Board of Education and the National Urban League and in various advocacy and public interest roles.
The film also credits Andrew, a filmmaker, writer, artist, and teacher; Samara, an NYC based producer and post production supervisor; Alison Shurman, a New York-based editor; Naïm Amor, a French-born, Tucson, Arizona-based musician and composer; and Dash, a comic book writer/artist and animator.
Themes
"I Learn America" explores several important themes, including:
The immigrant experience: The film provides an intimate look at the challenges and triumphs of immigrant teenagers as they navigate a new country, learn a new language, and adapt to a new culture.
The importance of education: The International High School at Lafayette is a haven for these students, providing them with the support and resources they need to succeed.
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The power of community: The students find strength and support in each other, forming a close-knit community that helps them overcome the challenges they face.
The universal teenage experience: Despite their unique circumstances, the students in "I Learn America" also grapple with the same issues that all teenagers face, such as identity, relationships, and the future.
Reception
"I Learn America" has been praised for its honest and humanizing portrayal of immigrant teenagers. The film has been screened at schools and community centers across the country, sparking dialogue about immigration and the challenges faced by immigrant students.
One viewer commented that each story is "so lovely and heart breaking and incredible in its own unique way!" They added that it is a "really great reminder of the REAL people" impacted by immigration policies. Another viewer noted the film's "high educational value," praising its close and personal look at high school-aged immigrant students.
The "Human Library"
Dissard's goal is to record as many histories of immigrant children from around the country as he can. At ilearnamerica.com, you can find an entire “Human Library” filled with the self-told narratives of immigrant children from across the country.
tags: #i #learn #america #movie #documentary
