The growing up process is, of course, universally familiar and we’re no stranger to watching characters age on screen. Whether it’s child actors transitioning to adulthood across many years on television or film franchises, or fictional characters lives developing through various actors, it is a progression that we are very used to. In a project that was filmed across a twelve year period, forward-thinking director Richard Linklater presents a coming-of-age story with unique scope. ‘Boyhood’ stars Ellar Coltrane as Mason Jr who starts the film a six-year-old boy riding around care-free on his bike, and ends an eighteen-year-old ready to start college. Ethan Hawke and Patricia Arquette play Mason’s parents and his older sister is portrayed by Lorelai Linklater, who is the daughter of the director. The film steadily follows Mason and his family’s growth, through their ups and downs, and revolutionises the art of storytelling in doing so.

