Louder Than a Bomb is a film about passion, competition, teamwork, and trust. It’s about the joy of being young, and the pain of growing up. It’s about speaking out, making noise, and finding your voice.

It also just happens to be about poetry.

Each year, more than six hundred teenagers from over sixty Chicago area schools gather for the world’s largest youth poetry slam, a competition known as “Louder Than a Bomb”. Founded in 2001, Louder Than a Bomb is the only event of its kind in the country—a youth poetry slam built from the beginning around teams. Rather than emphasize individual poets and performances, the structure of Louder Than a Bomb demands that kids work collaboratively with their peers, presenting, critiquing, and rewriting their pieces. To succeed, teams have to create an environment of mutual trust and support. For many kids, being a part of such an environment—in an academic context—is life-changing.

A documentary feature intended for theatrical release, Louder Than a Bomb chronicles the stereotype-confounding stories of four teams—Steinmetz, Whitney Young, Oak Park/River Forest, and Northside College Prep—as they prepare for and compete in the 2008 event. By turns hopeful and heartbreaking, the film captures the tempestuous lives of these exceptional kids, exploring the ways writing shapes their world, and vice versa. This is not “high school poetry” as we often think of it. This is language as a joyful release, irrepressibly talented teenagers obsessed with making words dance. Set against backdrop of Barack Obama’s historic primary campaign, Louder Than a Bomb paints a powerful and timely portrait of the Obama generation, from the heart of the president’s hometown.

There are several ways you can support Louder Than a Bomb:

Donate — Tax-deductible contributions can be made through our 501(c)3 fiscal sponsor, IFP Chicago.

Invest — If you’re a friend of the project who is interested in investing, contact us so that we can provide you with a private placement memorandum and other required documents to consider.

Spread the Word — Help us get the word out by forwarding this page to anyone you think might be interested.

For more information, contact us:
ltab@siskeljacobs.com
773.271.9500