Independent feature American Yearbook looks at the sobering consequences of teen bullying in a world after Columbine.

The explosive and taut independent narrative American Yearbook is set to have its U.S. Premiere at Los Angeles’ annual filmmaker discovery festival, DancesWithFilms (danceswithfilms.com). In its 7th year, DancesWithFilms is the only U.S. film festival solely geared towards presenting “unknowns”, mandating that all competition films have no “known” directors, actors or producers. It’s become a shopping ground for emerging talent.

American Yearbook is the true-to-life story of high school dreamer, Will, whose hope of being a successful photographer is ripped from his grasp, as he is relentlessly targeted by a vicious pack of local bullies. Will befriends a mysterious, brooding character named Chance, who convinces Will that they should acquire a gun and “pull a Columbine”. Amanda, the girl that Will adores, pleads with him to set aside revenge. But is Will’s desperation too strong for him to simply walk away? Find out in the premiere screening June 16th, 7:15 pm. Writer/director Brian Ging and members of the cast will be in attendance for a Q & A after the film.

Ging’s says his feature film debut is a very passionate one, stating, “I’m exploring teen bullying from a post-Columbine perspective, focusing on the intense emotions of the teenagers and not just guns and gore. My goal is to bring the important subject of school violence to light in a story that people can identify with, and to strongly impact the audience by the powerful emotions these kids deal with.” Ging flies to the U.K. this week for the World Premiere at the Filmstock Film Festival June 7th in England, where there will be a panel discussion after the screening with Ging as well as British teachers and students talking about the bold messages about school violence in the film.

The screening will be held June 16, 7:15pm at the Laemmle’s Monica 4-Plex 1332 Second Street, Santa Monica, CA 90405. Information and tickets are available online through american-yearbook.com, or by calling 310-394-9741.

American Yearbook is currently seeking distribution, and director Brian Ging can be contacted at: bging@american-yearbook.com.