“It’s important you keep your expectations in check:” In “Stay Awake,” the prescient debut of director Jamie Sisley, we meet two teenage brothers, Ethan (Wyatt Olef) and Derek (Fin Argus), who not only have to deal with the usual problems of adolescence, but also play the role of caretaker to a deeply depressive and self-destructive mother (Chrissy Metz) in the throes of addiction. The story is not merely relevant, as tens of thousands of people in the United States die of opioid overdoses every year, but deeply personal, as Sisley based the film on his own adolescence in small-town America.
With “Stay Awake,” Sisley promises to give audiences an intimate view at a problem impacting millions of people every day with the hopes that they leave theaters wielding a bit more empathy for those stricken with the illness of addiction. Of his approach to the making of the film, Sisley has said, “I think a lot of good can be done with a lot of movements when you just have people living and being who they are…The more we see people normalized, the better.”
The film’s website, which features trailers and clips that can be watched ahead of its release, also features a list of resources for those who may be struggling with addiction or know someone who is.
Courtesy of MarVista Entertainment, “Stay Awake” opens in New York May 19 at Film Forum and in Los Angeles at Laemmle Royal on May 25.