“At the Ready” is a 2021 Sundance Film Festival featured documentary that follows a group of El Paso’s Horizon High School students who have joined the school’s criminal justice club with an interest in law enforcement.
Over the course of a year, students in the criminal justice club participate in drills and exercises such as no-knock warrants, drug raids and active shooter scenarios to best prepare them for a future career as border patrol officers. Students are further drawn to the career because law enforcement offers some of the highest salaries in the region.
It’s particularly interesting to note that El Paso is just 10 minutes from the Mexico border, with the documentary taking place during a heavily anti-immigrant Trump administration—and the featured students are first generation Latinx with familial ties to Mexico.
We are offered a glimpse into not only their journey through the club, but their home lives, and how the politics of the environment affect their future decisions.
Koku Tona interviews director Maisie Crow, and producers Hillary Pierce and Abbie Perrault who speak on their experiences during this process and what it was like to witness the students’ evolution through the program.
Watch our interview with the filmmakers of “At the Ready”, and let us know what you think!
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