Coming to VOD tomorrow, Friday, June 26:
NO SMALL MATTER
Directors:
Danny Alpert, Greg Jacobs, and Jon Siskel
World Premiere:
Community screenings (Summer 2018)
About:
An exploration of the vital importance of early childhood education.
Although studies have clearly shown that the first five years of a child’s life are critical for its brain development, our society still struggles to prioritize and make possible quality early education. Teachers and childcare professionals are paid substandard salaries, parents are not afforded sufficient maternity or paternity leave, and the cost of childcare puts it out of reach of lower- and middle-class families. Children who are given fewer educational opportunities as a result go on to underperform, failing in a failed system, and perpetuating class divisions and unfair stereotypes. Filmmakers Danny Alpert, Greg Jacobs, and Jon Siskel attempt to explore the challenges facing American parents as they try to make the best of it, while pointing to the consequences that could be avoided if our society better invested in early care and education for all. Unfortunately, the film takes on far too much, and takes a didactic approach that it tries, unsuccessfully, to soften with frankly cheesy elements, like several unnecessary would-be comedic bits that fall flat. At its best when profiling parents or teachers, the project works primarily as an educational call to action than as a well-crafted documentary.
