At SXSW 2026, I saw the world premiere of Dead Deer High, a film that hits on a deeply personal level—especially for anyone who has spent time in a classroom or understands the burden teachers carry. Directed by Jo Rochelle and written by Joshua Roark, the film follows a high school slam poetry team and their English teacher as they prepare for a national competition one year after a tragedy has changed their lives. It’s a story about healing, resilience, and finding a voice through poetry in the wake of a life-altering event.
The cast—including Zack Kozlow, Holden Goyette, Kyla Brown, Christian Cruz, Ayanna Berkshire, and Joseph Bertót—brings a genuine sincerity to the material. There’s an rawness in their performances that helps carry the emotional weight of the story, even when the narrative sometimes leans a bit toward the exaggerated. The students’ journeys feel sincere, and their words—delivered through poetry—convey a real sense of urgency and emotion.
What struck me most is how relevant and timely the film feels. While the story itself can sometimes seem slightly heightened or dramatized, the message remains unmistakably clear. As a retired ELA teacher and someone who experienced lockdown drills with students, I felt this film very personally. There’s an underlying sense of fear—particularly the quiet, constant responsibility of being the adult in the room, in charge of young lives. That perspective adds a subtle emotional weight to certain moments that’s hard to forget.
At the same time, Dead Deer High celebrates the written word. Poetry as an outlet for expression isn’t new, but the film highlights how powerful it can be, especially for young people trying to cope with grief, anger, and uncertainty. There’s something deeply moving about seeing students find their voices and use language to understand what they’ve experienced.
The fact that this film was directed, written, produced, and edited by teachers adds an extra layer of authenticity. It’s easy to feel that lived experience through their storytelling. Scott Segal, Jim Bellinson, Randy Weiss, Michelle Segal, and Carolyn Bellinson all contribute to a project that feels rooted in real-world understanding rather than distance.
Dead Deer High is a powerful, though slightly overly dramatized, story that still conveys its core message. It’s emotionally impactful, timely, and rooted in something very real. For me, it resonated on multiple levels—not just as a viewer but as someone who understands both the classroom environment and the fears that come with it. It serves as a reminder of the importance of expression and how poetry can voice what’s otherwise too heavy to carry alone.
The film premiered at SXSW 2026, followed by a Q&A with the cast and crew that offered deeper insight into the creative process and the deeply personal connections many had to the material. The writer also generously provided audience members with a book of his poetry, which felt like a meaningful extension of the movie’s central themes and a fitting gesture for a story so rooted in written expression.