''Sugar'' is an American film released on November 8, 2013 in conjunction with Homeless Youth Awareness Month. The film was directed by

Rotimi Rainwater Rotimi James Rainwater (born November 29, 1970) is an American writer, director, and producer. He is best known for the film Sugar, and the documentary Lost in America, both of which focus on homeless youth. Personal life Rainwater was born in ...

, written by Tony Aloupis and Rotimi Rainwater, and stars

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, and Austin Williams. The film is based on the experiences Rainwater had when he himself lived on the streets.

Plot

Based on true events experienced by Rotimi Rainwater, ''Sugar'' is the story of a young girl named Sugar with a troubled past trying to survive on the streets of

Venice Beach Venice is a neighborhood of the city of Los Angeles within the Westside region of Los Angeles County, California. Venice was founded by Abbot Kinney in 1905 as a seaside resort town. It was an independent city until 1926, when it was annexed by ...

. Sugar suffers from

PTSD Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that can develop because of exposure to a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on a ...

after losing her entire family in a horrific car crash. She survives with her group of outcast friends on the streets of Venice Beach, trying to find their own place in the world. Like so many homeless youth, Sugar is running from the pain of her past and will do anything to escape it. However, with the help of Bishop, her counselor in the youth shelter, she is able to reconnect with her uncle who has been searching for her. Sugar's new world starts to crumble when forced to confront the demons she's run from for the last two years. ''Sugar'' is an all too common story of a troubled youth learning how to stop hiding, and to start healing.

Production

''Sugar'' began filming on November 30, 2010. The film was released theatrically in November 2013.

Reception

In ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'', Inkoo Kang said that "as a whole, the film's characters touchingly illustrate the tolls of living with unresolved trauma and chronic uncertainty, as well as the solidarity and relative freedom this community of outcasts enjoys."

References

External links

* * 2013 films Films shot in Venice, Los Angeles 2013 drama films American drama films Films about homelessness Films set in Los Angeles 2010s English-language films 2010s American films {{2010s-drama-film-stub