“From a team of artists attuned to the power of images… Equal parts funny and emotionally affecting… it’s a refreshing reminder in a world community that seems increasingly cynical. Dear Thirteen bravely suggests that looking back just might be the way ahead”
Film Score: 9/10
Sumner Forbes, Film Threat
“A tender portrait of 13-year-olds across the globe, including a Jewish boy preparing for his bar mitzvah, this documentary trains its eye on a generation coming of age in an especially complicated time”
Sarah Rosen, NY Jewish Week
Interview: DOC NYC 2022 Women Directors: Meet Alexis Neophytides – “Dear Thirteen”
“Alexis Neophytides’s eye-opening documentary takes viewers all over the world to show the vast variety of what it means to be 13 years old in modern societies. The children in the film are wise beyond their years and yet achingly beautiful. This is the kind of movie that sends you back to your own past to look at how you have grown up and changed over the years, and yet it’s never preachy or condescendig. We put an awful lot on kids these days and the film explores what they actually want from the world and their lives. It’s the best kind of documentary – enlightening and entertaining.”
Clarke Reader, Independent Reviewer, Vail Film Festival
Far from the unfavorable images often espoused in pop culture, today’s teens are some of the most engaged, thoughtful, creative, courageous, and self-aware of any era. Filmmaker and middle-school educator Alexis Neophytides gifts us this survey of thirteen-year-olds from across the globe as they navigate the joys and complexities of that seminal age. With tenderness and candor, these teens share a glimpse into their lives as they make sense of the world around them and clarify their sense of self.
Karen McMullen, DOC NYC
“The global group takes on timely topics such as gender identity, social media, and the role of family and friendships through firsthand interviews, archival footage, and photos.”
Sabrina McFarland, Common Sense Media
“Alexis Neophytides’ documentary Dear Thirteen takes a look at what it means to be thirteen…edited together expertly by Trina Rodriguez.”
Sarah Boslaugh, TheArtsSTL
“Dear Thirteen… vibrantly weaves together nine stories of 13-year-olds from across the globe.” It is the “winner of the AICEF Prize, presented to a first or second-time feature filmmakers whose work embraces cross-cultural themes either in the narrative or documentary genre.”
Jim Lowe, Times Argus
