“Sounds Like Teen Spirit,” Jamie Jay Johnson’s energetic documentary about the Junior Eurovision Song Contest, is a crowd-pleaser in the best possible way. While the film might seem like a no-brainer (cute kids + compelling stories + kitschy costumes = crossover doc hit), it manages to trace a precise, well-considered path, never detouring into JonBenet territory. At a post-screening Q & A on the opening night of the True/False Film Festival, Johnson explained his technique: “I followed the kids I liked.”

And it’s that simple.

This isn’t to say the film lacks depth—far from it. Each of the young (ages 10-15), talented protagonists has his or her own trial: Marina from Bulgaria tries to make sense of her father’s absence (while singing in a girl-group called “Bon-Bon”; yes, that’s really their name); exuberant Yiorgos from Cyprus stays positive despite taunting in school about his sexuality; and Mariam, from tiny, impoverished Georgia, has the pressure of an entire country weighing on her.

Eurovision is a huge event for these children, and the finals are broadcast across the continent, the winner determined by a televote. The European Broadcasting Union states that the event’s purpose is: “to promote young talents in the field of popular music, by encouraging competition among the children performers.”

This seems like a recipe for bubblegum-heartbreak, right?

Johnson manages a coup by finding kids who seem actually, sort of…well-balanced. They’re articulate, talented, and just want to perform. While the film is poppy and humorous, it’s also unabashedly sincere. The actual Eurovision event is a joy to behold, and while not all the protagonists receive the number of votes they hoped for—in fact most don’t—all of them sing their hearts’ out.

One of the straight-faced, too-peppy Eurovision hosts sums up the ecstatic tone best by exclaiming to the camera: “I’m pissing my pants with excitement!”

Enough said.

For more of our SXSW coverage, click to our special page here.

# posted by James Ponsoldt @ 3/18/2009 05:44:00 PM

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