EduGuide
MOONLIGHT
About Moonlight
Moonlight is a 2016 coming-of-age film from A24, written and directed by Barry Jenkins based on Tarell Alvin McCraney’s unpublished semi-autobiographical play In Moonlight Black Boys Look Blue. The film presents three stages in the life of the main character, Chiron: his youth, adolescence, and early adult life. It explores the difficulties he faces with his sexuality and identity, including the physical and emotional abuse he endures growing up. It became the first film with an all-black cast and the first LGBTQ-related film to win the Oscar for Best Picture.
- Type: Feature Film
- Genre: Drama
- Length: 1 hr 51 min
- Parental Warning: Rated R for some sexuality, drug use, brief violence, and language throughout
- Available On: iTunes (to purchase)
About the EduGuide
The official EduGuide for Moonlight is available to download for free by clicking the large white button above. It is also available in Spanish.
The EduGuide will walk you through each of the film’s three acts individually while asking you to think critically about Chiron’s story at each stage of his life. It’s intended for young adults (YA) ages 17+, or those in late high school or college. You can follow this guide on your own, with your fellow GSA members, during family night, or even in a classroom. You can watch and discuss one act at a time, or even watch the entire film in one sitting.
This EduGuide is an adaptation of the Moonlight Educator Toolkit (It Takes a Village) written by Tim’m West in collaboration with the LGBTQ+ Community Initiative at Teach For America (TFA), the National Black Justice Coalition, and the former White House Initiative on Educational Excellence for African Americans. For more on how both of these resources came to be, click here.
To learn more about the educational materials and opportunities the It Gets Better Project currently provides, please visit itgetsbetter.org/edu.