Great news! The documentary film SAM NOW, directed by Reed Harkness, will be available on video-on-demand (VOD) platforms such as iTunes, Amazon, Google Play, and VUDU starting June 6. The film tells the story of two brothers who embark on a journey to find their missing mother, using various video formats to create a mosaic of love, longing, and loss. SAM NOW has been screened at over 30 film festivals and has won 12 awards, including seven for Best Documentary. These festivals include the Zurich Film Festival 2022, SCAD Savannah Film Festival 2022, Bend Film Festival 2022, Santa Cruz Film Festival 2022, Indie Memphis Film Festival 2022, Spokane International Film Festival 2023, and the Victoria Film Festival 2023. The film is a HA/HA Production produced by Reed Harkness and Jason Reid and co-produced with ITVS and 2R Productions. The soundtrack features music by The Sonics, The Wailers, Dead Moon, Porcelain Raft, Smog, Kath Bloom, Styrofoam, and Teengenerate.
“I am pleased that SAM NOW will be available on VOD,” said in a press statement the film’s director Reed Harkness. “As a teen, I watched every independent film I could get my hands on from the local video store. I loved coming-of-age movies. I loved Truffaut and Apted. But nothing existed quite like what I really wanted to see, so over the next 25 years, I made this movie. It’s totally, exactly the film I’ve wanted to see. I hope that anyone who watches SAM NOW can find a piece of themselves within it.”
About ” Sam Now”
In their creative pursuit to solve a family mystery, Sam Harkness and his older half-brother Reed use various camera formats, from hand-developed Super 8 film to Arri 4K, to capture their journey. The resulting documentary, SAM NOW, employs a hybrid narrative approach, weaving together fictional films, home videos, family interviews, and vérité scenes to tell the story of Sam’s missing mother and their search for answers. As we follow the brothers on a spontaneous road trip, we learn about Sam’s mother Jois’ complicated adoption history from Japan, and how it has affected the Harkness family, including Sam’s brother Jared, father Randy, and grandma Doris. Through it all, SAM NOW explores themes of growth and intergenerational trauma, balancing heavy emotions with lighthearted moments and a sense of optimism. We witness Sam’s coming of age from 11 to 36, as he transforms from an optimistic teenager determined to find his mom to a man striving to break the cycle of trauma.
About Director Reed Harkness
Director Reed Harkness started his filmmaking journey by attending film school in his own backyard and garage. At the age of 18, he began creating a series of short films featuring his younger brother Sam, which laid the foundation for his latest project, SAM NOW. This coming-of-age film captures Sam’s journey from age 11 to 36, and is the culmination of 25 years of work. Reed has also directed the award-winning 30-minute documentary FOREST ON FIRE, as well as the documentary series HOUSE ON FIRE for Topic. For more information on Reed Harkness and his work, visit haha.work.
