PEARBLOSSOM HWY Young Americans

Friends Cory and Anna are drifting through life, struggling to find their place. Cory is sick of life in the desert and wants to be on a reality show, so he can prove to his brother that he isn’t a screw-up. Anna is in the country illegally, selling sex to save enough money to take her citizenship test. When Cory’s brother visits and Anna’s dying Grandmother takes a turn for the worst, the two are forced to examine the direction of their lives. Filmmaker Mike Ott (AFI FEST 2010) further explores coming of age, immigration and disillusionment with the American Dream, themes present in his previous films. With PEARBLOSSOM HWY he also blurs the line between character and actor by re-teaming with LITTLEROCK collaborators Cory Zacharia and Atsuko Okatsuka, who incorporate excerpts of their real life stories in the film. This is Ott’s most challenging and personal work to date.