Synopsis
Brothers Ethan (17) and Derek (19) try their best to navigate the pressures of teenage life while tending to their mother’s debilitating prescription drug addiction. Based on the filmmaker’s adolescence in small-town North-America, Stay Awake is a personal exploration of the roller coaster ride that families go on while trying to help their loved ones battle a disease that affects millions every day.
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Filmmaker
Jamie Sisley
He graduated from the University of Virginia and has a Master’s in Film from Columbia University. His short film Stay Awake premiered at the Berlin Film Festival and won the Grand Jury Prize at the Slamdance Festival, among other awards. Subsequently, he premiered the feature documentary Farewell Ferris Wheel, awarded at Tribeca, and premiered Stay Awake, a feature based on the short of the same name, which won the Cinema Vision 14plus award at the Berlinale.
Filmography: Stay Awake (2022, D'A 2023), Farewell Ferris Wheel (co-directed, 2016), Stay Awake (short film, 2015)
Awards
Special Mention of the Youth Jury Generation 14plus
Cinema Vision 14plus Award
Poster
