Catching Out (2002)

Synopsis: "Catching Out," or freight train hopping, is generally regarded as a practice of depression-era hobos. This affectionate documentary by Sarah George, a rail-rider herself, examines the lives of... "Catching Out," or freight train hopping, is generally regarded as a practice of depression-era hobos. This affectionate documentary by Sarah George, a rail-rider herself, examines the lives of four young modern-day train hoppers and their reasons for partaking in this distinctly American way of travelling. Switch and Baby Girl met at a soup kitchen in California and rode the rails together for several months before becoming parents. The daughter of a hippie ship captain who died when she was a year old, Jessica dropped out of the University of California to ride the rails with her boyfriend. Her periodic train travels fuel her writing, some of which has been published. Environmental activist Lee lives in a forest hut, publishes a hobo-themed zine and rides over 10,000 miles a year on hopped trains. George shot CATCHING OUT over a period of five years, allowing her to capture a series of dramatic events in the lives of her subjects, all of whom see the trains as a symbol of freedom from the constrictions of society. Though often technically crude, CATCHING OUT sheds affectionate and often amusing light on a subculture with which most viewers are likely to have little familiarity. [More]

Director: Sarah George

Director: Sarah George
Producer: Sarah George
Composer: Peter Droge
Studio: Seventh Art Releasing