FOLLOW THE LEADER (DOCUMENTARY FILM)
Summary
A documentary following a trio of teenagers and their experiences with the United States political process. Three sixteen-year old boys, Nick Troiano, David "D.J." Beauregard Jr., and Benjamin Trump, are class presidents in their high schools and all dream of a career in politics. At age sixteen all of them identify themselves as conservative. In September of 2006, Nick lives in Milford, Pennsylvania and is highly involved with the community. He is interested in photography and runs a non-profit organization to benefit the county. His parents moved to Milford from Brooklyn, and he is proud to be a part of the community. D.J., hailing from Methuen, Massachusetts, considers politicians to be "like rock stars," and has experience working for a political campaign for a local councilwoman. He became interested in politics shortly after the attack on the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001. He describes his hometown as a "pocket of all-American patriotism" in a largely liberal area. His parents both work at Raytheon, a missile production facility which employs a large number of townsfolk. He considered himself a "geek" but gained popularity with his interest in politics, which he considers to be his "sport." Ben, living in Springfield, Virginia, calls politics the "ultimate game," and something he feels must be pursued from an early age. He is extremely competitive about his political work and idolizes famous historical leaders like Napoleon and Alexander the Great. He appreciates living so close to the nation's capital. All three boys discuss how the rise of international terrorism has shaped their generation's political views. Nick speaks with his friend Kathryn, who attended an all-girls political boot camp which she describes as a "joke." During the discussion Nick reveals that he has some thoughts about the gender gap in politics which Kathryn does not agree with. Nick holds a fundraiser event for the Pike County Youth Coalition, of which he is the executive director. He believes that the key to politics is "putting yourself out there" and attracting attention. Soon he finds that the website for the Coalition has been hacked by his classmate, who inserted a number of embarrassing photographs of Nick onto the page, as well as other alterations. Nick and his family are livid and have a heated argument with the classmate and his family, threatening legal action if the website is not restored. Nick takes it quite personally, but the website is restored the following day, and his family withdraws their threats. In January of 2007, Ben participates in a discussion in his class about the presidential bids of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, particularly about the role of racism. Ben believes that Obama has a chance of becoming president and that the level of discrimination in politics is "unfair." He believes that a "paradigm shift" away from the influence of white males in politics is inevitable. Ben recounts how his father left the family, motivated in part by his disappointment in Ben. He explains that his father never approved of his natural aptitude for speech and debate, preferring a son with more athletic interests. Ben feels that his father's departure from his life serves as a motivating force; he strongly desires to prove his father wrong and notes that he has become more conservative and individualistic as a result. He demonstrates his talent for speech by winning an award in the Washington Area Speech Tournament. In Methuen, D.J. begins to have second thoughts about his political views, and begins to support the Democrat cause. He believes that Republicans have made too many "mistakes," and starts working in the phone bank for Deval Patrick, a democrat running for governor of Massachusetts. Although he made the political party transition quickly, D.J. feels good about the decision. He says that his Republican views were largely influenced by that of his staunchly Republican father, who is now divorced from his mother. In April 2007, D.J. visits his father to talk about his newfound ideology change. Their discussion soon turns into an argument about issues of the day, such as the handling of the situation in Iraq. D.J. longs for the era of relative prosperity in the 1990's, believing that the United States was a "beacon of hope." He meets former presidential candidate Michael Dukakis, who calls D.J. and people like him "the future." The three boys graduate from high school in June of 2007. Ben works as an intern for the re-election campaign of Republican Virginia state senator Ken Cuccinelli, mostly working on creating online advertisements targeting likely Republican voters. After a very close race, Cuccinelli is re-elected by a slim margin, and Ben feels as though his work made a difference. He is pleased that he is climbing the political ladder more quickly than he anticipated. In August of 2007, Nick attends American University in Washington, DC. College soon influences his political beliefs, and he is no longer content to defend ideas based solely on party lines. In the midst of this new "intellectual" forum for his ideas, he becomes enamored of the third-party movement "Unity08," which hopes to construct a bipartisan party to run for president. The leader of the movement, Doug Bailey, seems to have faith in Nick's support, although in his hometown Nick finds much resistance to the idea of a bipartisan ticket. D.J. remains at home in Methuen and attends a local college so that he can continue to be involved with local politics. He takes a job working for Democrat Niki Tsongas's campaign for Congress. In October of 2007 he works at her phone bank and decries the advertising tactics of her opponent, Jim Ogonowski. He continues to meet with Dukakis and becomes concerned that politicians are not doing their best to serve the "public good." Tsongas wins the Congress seat, leaving D.J. pleased. However, he continues to think about his future and still harbors aspirations of becoming President of the United States. Meanwhile, Ben attends Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he is somewhat ostracized due to being a Republican on a largely liberal campus. His volunteer meetings are often derailed by the school's lack of support, although he has come to expect such things. Despite all this, he is learning a great deal from classroom discussions, believing that he used to be "arrogant" and immature. He feels that while he will continue to grow and change, his core political views will remain largely intact as he gets older. The Unity08 movement dissolves in favor of supporting the presidential bid of New York mayor Michael Bloomberg, leaving Nick feeling "betrayed." In January of 2008, Nick attends the New York Public Service Conference in New York City to hear Bloomberg speak. He notes that his idealism is slowly fading as he makes certain realizations about politicians and the nature of politics as a whole. His interests turn towards journalism, and he starts a political podcast with his college friend. They soon create their own public access political commentary television program. He is torn between his interest in photojournalism and his desire to become a politician. Although he remains conservative, he becomes supportive of Barack Obama. D. J. attends Granite State, an evangelical Baptist church in New Hampshire, and becomes very interested in religious work. After the Tsongas election, he takes time to think about his role in politics and realizes that he hasn't had the opportunity to assume a leadership role. He argues with his father about the decision, but remains fixated upon it. The 2008 primary election season begins, and Nick, D.J., and Ben all become involved in their own ways. Ben goes to work for the McCain campaign, D.J. contemplates voting for Obama, and Nick covers the election via his journalistic outlets. When Election Day comes about on November 4th, Ben is so anxious that he throws up. He and a few fellow conservatives display signs to passers-by going to vote at his college campus, and are asked by poll watchers to take them down. Ben cites "borderline-corrupt favoritism" in this decision. D.J. ends up voting for McCain, although he suspects that Obama will win regardless. Nick calls Obama's story "uniquely American" and votes for him, although he does not totally agree with Obama's policies. The three young men watch the election results closely as Obama wins; Ben is depressed at McCain's loss but vows to continue working in politics. D.J. recognizes the historic significance of Obama's victory. He decides to transfer to ministry school and abandon his desire to go to the White House, remarking that "you have to be sick in the head to want to be president." On January 20th, 2009, Barack Obama is inaugurated as President of the United States. Ben stands with the crowds at inauguration, remarking that young people like him are driven less by party lines and more by ideas. He still hopes to be in the White House someday. Nick soon grows frustrated with Obama and takes time off from college to support another third-party movement, calling himself a "radical centrist." Ben applies to law school and works as a part-time researcher for the United States Army, as well as getting engaged to his girlfriend. D.J. studies at Bible College, but still maintains an interest in politics, even bringing Dukakis into his church to talk about public service. He falls in love with a fellow student, with whom he plans to establish a youth ministry.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: November 30, 2011
- RUNNING TIME: 1:11:23
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 108701
- GENRE: Public affairs/Documentaries
- SUBJECT HEADING: Public affairs/Documentaries
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Jonathan Goodman Levitt … Producer, Director
- David Schweitzer … Music by
- Zack Martin … Music by
- Tim Goalen … Music by
- Erik Janson … Music by
- Jay Aronson
- Doug Bailey
- David "D.J." Beauregard Jr.
- David Beauregard Sr.
- Diane Beauregard
- Michael Bloomberg
- Kathryn Braisted
- Sam Brownback
- Bill Clinton
- Hillary Clinton
- Ken Cuccinelli
- Chris Dodd
- Michael Dukakis
- Kevin Gallagher
- Chris Golden
- Caroline Kennedy
- Ted Kennedy
- Anthony Milas
- Barack Obama
- Jim Ogonowski
- Deval Patrick
- John J. Siptroth
- Alison Thomas
- Denise Troiano
- Louis Troiano
- Nick Troiano
- Benjamin Trump
- Vicky Trump
- Niki Tsongas