CHICAGO — Lauren Hightower thought she was getting pranked when her Englewood Girl Scouts troop received an invitation to attend the Doc10 Film Festival.
The invitation came in March, just days after the troop had surpassed its goal — by thousands — to sell enough cookie packages to stay active. The girls were hosting a cookie pickup day at their home base, Englewood’s Hope Manor II. A representative from Doc10 stopped by the veteran-supportive housing to grab their order and extend an invite, Hightower said.
“When they said they wanted us to attend the screening of a film called ‘Cookie Queens’ as a guest, I was like, ‘Are you serious? Is this real?’” Hightower said. “Once we realized it was real, the girls were so excited.”
“Cookie Queens,” a documentary by director Alysa Nahmias following four young Girl Scouts as they race to meet their cookie-selling goals, will screen 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Davis Theater, 4614 N. Lincoln Ave., as part of the Doc10 Film Festival. Nahmias will host a Q&A after the film with two of its stars, Nikki and Olive. Tickets are available here.
Also attending the screening are Chicago’s own cookie queens: Englewood’s Troop 26286. It will be the girls’ first time attending a film festival and their first Saturday field trip as a troop, Hightower said.
At least 15 troop members plan to attend the showing, and the girls will join the Q&A, Hightower said. The festival is sending a bus to take the troop to the theater for the big night.
When Lauren Hightower co-founded the Englewood troop in 2021, it had 15 members. The number has grown to over 30, with members joining from the local veteran housing and nearby elementary school. Credit: Provided/Laura Evans Media
When the Englewood Girl Scouts troop asked Block Club readers to help them sell 2,100 boxes of cookies to remain active, they didn’t expect their story to reach as many people as it did, Hightower said.
The troop has sold cookies at Hope Manor II, 6002 S. Halsted St., for five years, and many of the troop’s grade-school members are relatives of the veterans who live in the Volunteers of America Illinois housing. The girls struggled to sell cookies because neighbors — already facing financial barriers — couldn’t afford to fit the orders within their budgets, Hightower previously said.
After the story published, people from across the country bought boxes of cookies, Hightower said. Locally, authors, city leaders, chefs and Gov. JB Pritzker reached out to support them.
In about a week, the number of cookie packages sold climbed to 25,000 — more than 10 times the troop’s initial goal. The troop eventually sold about 34,000 packages of cookies, Hightower said.
The invitation to the Doc10 festival is another opportunity that makes the girls feel special, Hightower said.
“It’s been amazing to see what asking for help and reaching out to your community can do,” Hightower said. “People do care. Even though the world is crazy right now, there are still good people. I think it’s important for the girls to see that.”
The Englewood Girl Scouts troop have sold boxes of cookies inside and near the local veteran housing development for five years. Credit: Provided/Laura Evans Media
Saturday will be Nahmias’ first time meeting the Englewood troop, the director said.
“Cookie Queens” follows four young Girl Scouts ages 5-12 navigating socioeconomic status and identity as they try to sell dozens of boxes of cookies. It is Nahmias’ fourth feature documentary as a director.
Witnessing how the Doc10 Film Festival is connecting the film to local communities is “awesome,” Nahmias said.
“Obviously the kids in the film are extraordinary and their troops and communities are amazing, but it’s about looking at the extraordinary young people in every community and how we celebrate the girls who are doing amazing things and going on their way to doing even more incredible things as they as they get older,” Nahmias said.
Nalani (Left) and Jillian (Right) are members of the Englewood Girl Scouts troop, which aims to give grade school girls in the community a safe space to flourish and connect with positive role models. Credit: Provided/Laura Evans Media
Three years ago, Nahmias showed her 10- and 12-year-old children her latest film, “Art & Krimes by Krimes,” an Emmy award-winning documentary chronicling the life of an incarcerated artist smuggling a 40-foot mural out of prison.
When the credits rolled, she asked for their feedback.
“They were like, ‘We liked it. It was cool, mom. But next time, could you make a film that we really want to watch and share with our friends?’” Nahmias said.
Her children’s “double dare” spurred an interesting challenge: creating a nonfiction film that is entertaining and accessible for audiences of all ages, Nahmias said.
The closing night of last year’s Doc10 at the Davis Theater. Credit: Victoria Sanders
When people think of Girl Scouts, their first thought might be, “Oh, the kids are so cute,” Nahmias said.
But when creating “Cookie Queens,” Nahmias wanted to dig beneath the cuteness to unearth “how we see girls and women, how early they’re learning about and becoming active participants in the economy, and how their perception of self matches up with how the world sees them,” she said.
As a company, Girl Scouts earns about $800 million a year in cookie sales, outselling Oreo and Chips Ahoy!, Nahmias said.
The film chronicles four girls’ journeys to sell as many as 3,000 packages of cookies, the pressures they face to reach their goals and how their lives mold around their identities as Girl Scouts.
Similar to a Charlie Brown special, Nahmias and cinematographer Antonio Cisneros use the camera to make “Cookie Queens” feel like it’s from a kid’s perspective — though the film’s message is intended for all ages and genders, Nahmias said. Sound, music and framing blend together to bring audiences into the girls’ worlds, she said.
To capture the complex emotions of childhood, Nahmias reviewed scripted films that similiarly center children like Wes Anderson’s “Moonrise Kingdom,” Sean Baker’s “The Florida Project” and Céline Sciamma’s “Petite Maman.”
“These films are hilarious, joyful, exuberant, a little naive and a little painful,” Nahmias said. “There are challenges that kids face — self doubt, as well as self confidence and complete un-inhibition. I want people to experience that again, those fleeting moments where you just wanted to be older and felt so proud of something that looked so small to adults. I wanted adults and kids alike to be able to care about these small triumphs that children have.”
“Cookie Queens” will be distributed by Roadside Attractions in late summer, Nahmias said. Fans can stay tuned for the film appearing in a theater near them soon.
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