Girls State (film) explained

Music:	T. Griffin
Editing:	Amy Foote
Distributor:	Apple TV+
Runtime:	96 minutes^[1]
Country:	United States
Language:	English

Girls State is a 2024 American documentary film, directed and produced by Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine. It follows teenage girls from Missouri navigating a week-long immersive democratic experiment Girls State, learning how to build a government from the ground up. It serves as a companion film to Boys State (2020).

It had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2024, and was released by Apple TV+ on April 5, 2024.

Cast

The film primarily focuses on three participants in the program:

• Emily Worthmore, a Christian white conservative girl who runs for the Federalist Party Governor. She wants Girls State to be taken more seriously and increasingly focus on partisan issues rather than just bipartisan politics. Her passion for journalism leads to her interrogating the foundational differences between the Girls State and Boys State programs.
• Nisha Murali, an Indian girl who pushes herself to be more social and loves big decision-making, aiming to be a Girls State Supreme Court Justice, going through a string of pressing interviews to do so. She is most vocal about the topic of abortion rights.
• Tochi Ihekona, a black progressive girl who runs for the Nationalist Party State Attorney General. She is Nigerian with immigrant parents. She hopes to ensure she can provide quality legal counsel to the Supreme Court.

Other participants also make prominent appearances, especially Faith Glasgow and Cecilia Barton, who determinedly run for Federalist and Nationalist Party Governor respectively, as well as Brooke Taylor, who aims to be a Girls State Supreme Court Justice alongside Nisha, and Maddie Rowan, friend of Emily and vocal member of the queer community.

Premise

A large group of teenage girls with diverse backgrounds and views from Missouri attend 2022's Girls State, a week-long democratic experiment about building a government from the ground up. Several girls campaign for the highest office at Girls State, Governor of Missouri. The film also tackles the systemic differences between Girls State and Boys State, the latter often being socially taken more seriously as a program for meaningful political discussions.

By the end, Cecilia Barton wins the election for Governor and Tochi Ihekona successfully becomes Attorney General at Girls State. And even though she lost the election for Governor, Emily Worthmore is granted a scholarship.

Production

In December 2023, it was announced Jesse Moss and Amanda McBaine had directed a documentary film revolving around Girls State, with Apple TV+ producing and distributing.^[2]

Release

It had its world premiere at the 2024 Sundance Film Festival on January 18, 2024.^[3] It was released on April 5, 2024.^[4]

Notes and References

1. Web site: Girls State. Sundance Film Festival. January 18, 2024.
2. Web site: Apple Original Films Sets New Documentary Feature 'Girls State' From Filmmakers Jesse Moss & Amanda McBaine Of 'Boys State'. Deadline Hollywood. Valerie. Complex. December 1, 2023. January 18, 2024.
3. Web site: Sundance Unveils Packed 2024 Lineup That Includes A.I., Pedro Pascal, Kristen Stewart, Satan, Devo & Steven Yeun. Deadline Hollywood. Anthony. D'Alessandro. Dominic. Patten. December 6, 2023. January 18, 2024.
4. Web site: Girls State. Apple TV+. January 18, 2024.