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Halfway to Zen

John Adams
Toby Poser
United States, 2016, 95 min.

In English.
Includes violence and adult language.

After release from prison, Nick is trying to walk a straight line, flipping burgers and taking care of his father, Pop, who's forgotten what a terrible dad he once was. All Nick has is memories -- beautiful, painful, discolored with violence-- until he's reunited with Edie, the 11 year-old daughter he lost a decade ago. Only Edie is now Eddie, insisting she's a boy, and she hasn't come alone. It's a ragtag team of bulletproof misfits, each hoping to shed the past and grow new skin. The road to peace is rugged, but the first step will get you halfway there.

Director's Statement

Halfway to Zen is a play on the German expression for "goodbye"- auf wiedersehen. We like the tag-team imagery of saying goodbye to a broken past and moving forward toward a peaceful, reimagined future. In our experience, humor and strength are powerful, especially in tough times.  And this is a story about some unlikely powerful heroes.

Category: Drama, Festival Alum.
Themes: Aging, Family, Identity, Relationships.