A five-part documentary about the Central Bucks School District's culture-war battles is scheduled to premiere on PBS and WHYY on Monday, Sept. 21, according to Central Bucks News.
"Bucks County, USA," co-directed by Robert May and Oscar-winning filmmaker Barry Levinson, follows two Doylestown teenagers through the school board fights that consumed the district from 2020 onward. The series was filmed over four years and premiered its first two episodes at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, The 74 reported.
The first two episodes air in the opening week, with one episode following each successive week.
Two friends, two families
At the center of the series are Evi Casey and Vanessa Martino, then-14-year-old best friends who attended Lenape Middle School. Their families hold opposing political views. Vanessa's father, Paul Martino, is a Republican activist and businessman who in 2023 bankrolled a slate of GOP school board candidates that included his wife, Aarthi, according to The 74.
The documentary tracks how COVID-19 lockdown policies, LGBTQ+ rights, library book policies and debates over parental roles in education split families and neighbors across the district. The 2023 Central Bucks school board race serves as the series' narrative spine.
"We thought that perhaps the school board wars and the school board campaign itself could be the underbelly motor of how we tell the story," co-director Robert May told The 74.
District drew federal investigation
The series also touches on federal attention the district drew. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) opened an investigation after the ACLU of Pennsylvania alleged the district had created a hostile learning environment for LGBTQ students, according to The 74. A Central Bucks middle school teacher sued the district in 2023, alleging retaliation for advocating on behalf of LGBTQ+ students.
A library book review policy, reportedly shaped with ties to a conservative Christian law firm connected to the Family Research Council, took effect in early 2023 but was later withdrawn, The 74 reported.
The series features more than a dozen community members from across the political spectrum. The filmmakers conducted interview sessions lasting several hours, PhillyVoice reported. The documentary also includes residents from the Pennridge School District, according to the Bucks County Beacon.
Canceled screening, sold-out relocation
A pre-screening planned for Tuesday, Sept. 15 at Bucks County Community College's Zlock Performing Arts Center was canceled the day before by BCCC President Patrick M. Jones, who cited safety concerns, the Bucks County Herald reported. The event had been months in the planning and was to include a Q&A moderated by PBS NewsHour journalist Judy Woodruff.
The screening moved to the Hiway Theater in Jenkintown and sold out. The roughly four-hour event drew many Central Bucks residents, PhillyVoice reported.
Jeff Benedetto, a former Lower Makefield Township supervisor whose daughter appears in the series, told PhillyVoice that attendees from Central Bucks came together and shared a stage, calling it a reminder they were "all in this together."
What's next
The public TV station WETA is distributing discussion guides so communities can organize their own viewing events, and will provide lesson plans for schools, according to The 74. The first two episodes air Monday, Sept. 21 on PBS and WHYY stations, with remaining episodes following weekly through the fall.
