In the span of eight hilarious days in 1964, a young Catholic schoolboy rebels against authority, begins to ask tough questions, and comes of age, thanks to his four, wildly ill-behaved brothers.  [Ask for the 5-pg Look Book and camera-ready script]

SYNOPSIS:

There comes a time in everyone’s life when they cross a threshold from childhood to adulthood, quit believing everything their parents and teachers tell them, discover the opposite sex, and unexplainably turns a nice, sweet kid into a smart-ass. The year is 1964, and the day before TOMMY STOHLGREN’s twelfth birthday, he finally speaks up to the nun in religion class proclaiming that if God was all-loving and all-merciful, then there could be no Hell. His logical reasoning is unappreciated by SISTER MARY-SOMETHING, but it does raise a smile from his classmate, STEPHANIE CROMARTIE – a girl! Tommy notices girls for the first time, even as he is dragged by the ear to MOTHER SUPERIOR’S office. Tommy’s troubles are just beginning, but he gets a lot of help from his four ill-behaved brothers. JIMMY (13 ½), GEORGIE (10 ½), JERRY (8 ½), and BILLY (almost 7). They attend the same Catholic school and share the same bedroom in their small house in Oakland, California. The comical and introspective week that follows will change Tommy’s life forever!

Tommy’s twelfth birthday is especially memorable. He gets a black eye at breakfast, a bloody nose at lunch, and after dinner, his brothers blow out his birthday candles, scorching his face with hot powdered sugar. However, in the school library that day, he discovers that twelve is the Age of Reason. He begins to use philosophy and logic to question everything. Meanwhile, Tommy’s irreverent brothers and friends hasten his coming-of-age. The shenanigans of everyday life in this Irish-Catholic family are jaw-dropping and hilarious.

Tommy’s mind fills with questions and doubts about the only religion known to the family for generations, even as he and his best friend, JOHNNY GIUNTOLI (11 ½), are practicing to be altar boys. A day later, Tommy and his brothers dine-and-ditch from an ice cream parlor. The following day, the act of confession presents funny and awkward moments with FATHER MIGEUL (30), as innocent questions challenge the young priest. Friday morning, Tommy’s first Mass as an altar boy is a comical disaster where “Dominus vobiscum” conflicts with Do Wha Diddy. That afternoon at the Altar Boys Picnic, Tommy accidentally touches a girl’s breast for the first time, and he falls in love.

By the end of the eight-day period, Tommy trades the chaotic shared-bedroom, for solitude “Up on the Roof” where he has a life-changing epiphany. He realizes that Father Miguel is right. It’s okay to ask tough questions, even if they torment you. The unexamined life is not worth living! Tommy inaugurates his Age of Reason by kissing the girl whose name he still doesn’t know. Parents may help you grow older, but brothers help you grow up.

TWELVE - MY AGE OF REASON