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Amanda McBaine, Jesse Moss | USA | 2024
Filmmaking partners for over twenty years, Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss have been honored with awards for their diversified works on several moving picture platforms: THE MISSION (2023), THE OVERNIGHTERS (2014), BOYS STATE (2020), including individual episodes of two Netflix mini-series The Family and Dirty Money. It’s no wonder Apple Original Films deem the two as the right collaborators to share with the world the opportunity what individuals could dominate our country’s future in GIRLS STATE.
The maturity of the young women showcased in GIRLS STATE projects a resounding confidence in female leaders who have the power to direct our country of democratic country with love, intelligence, and integrity. Their leadership skills have the potential to fight for the freedoms our forefathers envisioned and protect justice for all.
Our country’s Boys and Girls State programs prove to be a fascinating training ground for teenagers to learn what it means to govern. McBaine and Moss’s description of BOYS STATE and GIRLS STATE, “A political coming-of-age story, following young male and female leaders from widely different backgrounds as they navigate an immersive experiment to build a government from the ground up.” Boys State which they showcased in 2020, examined American’s political turmoil and partisanship through the lens of teenage boys in Texas. Girls State took place in Missouri and came at the right time, 2022, with the political divisions widening, especially around women’s rights.
McBaine and Jesse share, “Interestingly, the Dobbs v. Jackson opinion had leaked just prior to the Girls State, and the likelihood of strict abortion restrictions in Missouri and in other conservative red states across the country was the subject of anxiety, debate, and discussion.” Both male and female programs follow a race for governor that is very competitive. Adding, “But a notable difference (of the two) was our focus on the formation of an all-female Supreme Court exercise and an argument of an abortion-related case before this court regarding the right to privacy.”
A glimpse of what could happen in our political culture with an all-female governing body was an exhilarating exercise to observe in GIRLS STATE. The girls featured took me on a political journey, most impressive and an emotional one, for which I was not prepared. Emily, Tochi, Nisha, Brooke, Cece, Maddie, and Faith presented courage, conviction, and leadership skills beyond their age—even in defeat. Our democracy will never waver with such women at the helm. They will respectfully debate, disagree, and work to find common ground.
Directors Statement about Missouri Girls State:
The American Legion Auxiliary Missouri Girls State (ALA MGS) is a transformative program that empowered young women across Missouri by providing immersive experiences in civic engagement, leadership, and public service while instilling the ALA motto, Service Over Self. Established in 1940. ALA MGS hosts a week-long session where approximately 700 high school juniors learn government functionality and how the government impacts journalism, education, law, and commerce. Participants gain valuable skills. In public speaking, problem-solving, and civics through interactive learning through a nonpartisan approach. ALA MGS fosters a sense of patriotism, military service appreciation, dedication to democratic principles, and a commitment to active participation in society. The program’s impact extends beyond the week-long sessions, shaping confident and informed leaders who contribute meaningfully to their communities.