A coming-of-age story set on the back of a dirt bike in Baltimore.

12 O’Clock Boys follows Pug, a young kid growing up in West Baltimore who is desperate to join the city’s illegal dirt bike riders. They tear through the streets in huge packs, pulling near-vertical wheelies while police helicopters follow from above.

Over three years, the film watches Pug chase the thrill, freedom and sense of belonging they offer him, even as his mother tries to steer him towards a different future. The riding is filmed beautifully, but there’s always a real sense of worry underneath it. Pug is standing at a crossroads in his life, and the camera can see it more clearly than he can.

Directed by Lotfy Nathan