| Boys State | |
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 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | |
| Produced by |
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| Cinematography | Thorsten Thielow |
| Edited by | Jeff Seymann Gilbert |
| Music by | T. Griffin |
Production companies |
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| Distributed by | |
Release dates |
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Running time | 109 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Boys State is a 2020 Americandocumentary film directed and produced byJesse Moss andAmanda McBaine. It follows a thousand teenage boys attendingBoys State in Texas, coming to build a representative government from the ground up.
The film had its world premiere at theSundance Film Festival on January 24, 2020, where it won the U.S. Documentary Competition Grand Jury Prize. It was released onApple TV+ on August 14, 2020, byA24 andApple.
In 2024, Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine released the companion filmGirls State, which follows the 2022 Girls State Program in Missouri.
The film focuses on four participants in the program:[2]
The film follows a thousand teenage boys attendingBoys State inAustin, Texas, coming together to build a representative government from the ground up, from all different political backgrounds, navigating challenges of organizing political parties, consensus, and campaigning for the highest office at Boys State,Governor of Texas.[6]
The boys arrive for the program, where they are randomly divided into two parties, the Nationalists and Federalists. Those wishing to run for governor seek to collect 30 signatures to get on the primary ballot. In the Nationalist party: MacDougall does so easily; Garza manages to reach the threshold just before the deadline. Otero delivers a powerful speech and is elected state chairman for the Nationalists; he is subject to an impeachment motion that easily fails. In the Federalist party, Feinstein, who had planned on running for governor decides not to after meeting Proietti Conti (they are in the same "city" or dormitory) and is elected state chairman for the Federalists. In the Nationalist primaries, Garza delivers a sincere speech, but questions arise among conservative voters about his past participation inMarch for Our Lives, as well as his views on abortion and immigration policies. MacDougall positions himself as a conservative, hiding his true beliefs, but he comes across as less passionate and loses the race to Garza.
Meanwhile, the Federalists have elected Proietti Conti as their gubernatorial candidate. In the general election, the Federalists launch a meme page, starting a trend of political attack pages and digital meme warfare. However, the party dissociates itself from making any more meme pages after someone created a page that made a racist attack on Otero. Garza seems to be a promising candidate, but when Proietti Conti tries to conduct a Q&A during a speaking event Otero disallows it on the grounds that it had not been specifically requested prior. Feinstein uses that to accuses Otero of bias in the next forum. The boys cast their votes, and Proietti Conti is elected governor.
The film had its world premiere at theSundance Film Festival on January 24, 2020.[7] Shortly after,A24 andApple acquired distribution rights to the film for $12 million.[8][9] The film was set to screen atSouth by Southwest on March 13, 2020, but the festival was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[10][11] It was released on Apple TV+ on August 14, 2020, after its UK release at Sundance London 2020 Online on August 9.[12]
Onreview aggregatorRotten Tomatoes, the film holds an approval rating of 94% based on 144 reviews, with an average rating of 8.2/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Startling, upsetting, and overall absorbing,Boys State strikingly depicts American political divisions -- and machinations -- taking root in the next generation."[13] OnMetacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 84 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "universal acclaim".[14]
At the2020 Sundance Film Festival, the film won the U.S. Documentary Competition Grand Jury Prize.[15] AtSouth by Southwest, the film won the Louis Black Lone Star Award Special Jury Recognition for Documentary.[16]
| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Critics' Choice Documentary Awards | Most Compelling Living Subject of a Documentary | Steven Garza | Won | [17] |
| Best Political Documentary | Boys State | Won | |||
| Houston Film Critics Society Awards | Best Documentary Feature | Boys State | Nominated | [18] | |
| Texas Independent Film Award | Boys State | Nominated | |||
| Online Film Critics Society Awards | Best Documentary | Boys State | Nominated | [19] | |
| Sundance Film Festival | US Grand Jury Prize – Documentary | Boys State | Won | [15] | |
| South by Southwest | Special Jury Recognition – Documentary | Boys State | Won | [20] | |
| 2021 | Austin Film Critics Association Awards | Best Documentary | Boys State | Won | [21] |
| Cinema Eye Honors | Audience Choice | Boys State | Won | [22] | |
| Outstanding Achievement in Nonfiction Feature Filmmaking | Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss | Nominated | [23] | ||
| Outstanding Achievement in Editing | Jeff Seymann Gilbert | Nominated | |||
| The Unforgettables | Steven Garza | Won | |||
| The Unforgettables | Rene Otero | Won | |||
| Directors Guild of America Awards | Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary | Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss | Nominated | [24] | |
| Hollywood Critics Association | Best Documentary | Boys State | Nominated | [25] | |
| National Board of Review | Top Five Documentaries | Boys State | Won | [26] | |
| Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards | Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special | Davis Guggenheim, Laurene Powell Jobs, Jonathan Silberberg, Nicole Stott, Shannon Dill, Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss | Won | [27] | |
| Outstanding Directing for a Documentary/Nonfiction Program | Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss | Nominated |
