Writer/Director Jessie Barr's Sophie Jones On Blu-ray And DVD From Oscilloscope Laboratories on Oct. 12

Oscilloscope Laboratories announced this past week that writer/director Jessie Barr’s heartfelt coming-of-age tale, Sophie Jones, will be heading home as both DVD and Blu-ray product offerings on Oct. 12.

At one time there was a thriving arthouse and film festival marketplace.   Little films; small films; delightful films could be showcased.  These cinematic treats could take their time developing a following … plus garner awards and press.   The past two years have been crushing, but still these films find their way to audiences who have grown weary of loud, noisy, Studio “tent pole” releases, which are simply made over and over and over again because it is easier than being creative.

Independent filmmaker, actress and producer, Jessie Barr, teamed up with her cousin Jessica Barr, who also stars as the title character, to write — from actual experiences — about loss, grief and the struggle to get on with one’s life.

Sophie (Jessica Barr — Crimson and Clover) is a 16-year-old high school student, smart, shy and in a normal setting would be just “background” at school; nothing special.   She would not be part of the in-crowd, not the cheerleader type, but quiet, sensitive and likely to have just a close circle of friends.   But, all of this changes when she suddenly loses her mother.

High school years can be hard enough … now this.   The focus of the film is on her, her grief, her coping with a loss that cannot be fathomed.   If such a film is to work, the audience must believe the actor; become invested in the character, otherwise the narrative collapses.   Jessica Barr nails it.

Everyone around her wants to help.   Her father, her younger sister and her life-long schoolmate, Claire (Claire Manning — in her film debut, but a long-time stage actress in the Portland, Oregon area where the film was shot), all try to help, but it becomes clear early-on that this is a journey, a struggle that only Sophie can endure.

The Barr cousin’s Sophie Jones is a film, that “in normal” times, would have played the festival circuit, found arthouse venues and slowly built an audience.  Now, it falls upon film distributors such as Oscilloscope to do the leg work and seek-out and find these gems.

Come Oct. 12, a wider audience can finally enjoy this well-told story on either DVD or Blu-ray.   You will not be disappointed … Jessie Barr’s direction is razor-sharp, intimate and assured, while her cousin’s performance is outstanding (come back in five years and see how their credits have grown).

Bonus features include commentary by filmmaker Jessie Barr, a video session with Barr and cast members, which is moderated by fellow filmmaker Megan Griffiths, a Q&A session with Jessie Barr and executive producer Nicole Holofener and the behind-the-scenes featurette titled “Secrets of Sophie Jones.”