Inbetween Girl -

Mei Makino’s 2021 film Inbetween Girl is a poignant, artistic exploration of the "in-between" spaces of adolescence—cultural, emotional, and social. Set against the humid, coastal backdrop of Galveston, Texas, the story follows 16-year-old Angie Chen (Emma Galbraith) as she navigates the messy intersection of a secret sexual awakening, her parents' divorce, and the search for her own voice as a biracial Chinese-American.

At its core, Inbetween Girl is an effectively-layered bildungsroman. It moves beyond typical teen movie tropes by taking the "messiness of growing up" seriously. Angie’s journey is defined by several shifting roles: Inbetween Girl

Inbetween Girl succeeds by embracing ambiguity. Through Angie’s video diaries and artistic output, the film captures the vulnerability of a teenager learning to prioritize the right things and, ultimately, learning to "speak her own name". It is a story about realizing that life isn't lived in the extremes of "misery and ecstasy," but in the complicated, beautiful shades of grey in between. Inbetween Girl — Mei Makino - In Review Online Mei Makino’s 2021 film Inbetween Girl is a