When James Scurlock first arrived as an undergraduate student at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School of Business, he was filled with optimism. "I was inspired by Donald Trump, which I think a lot kids were back when I went to college," he said.
Documentary looks at lending and practices of debt collectors
Consumerism has hit independent movies, in the wake of indie hits such as 2004's Super Size Me, about the fast-food industry, and this year's An Inconvenient Truth, Al Gore's warning about global warming.
Now comes Maxed Out, an independent film on the credit-card and collection industries made with the help of two local consumer pit bulls: advocate Bud Hibbs and attorney Jerry Jarzombek.
Students can begin building a solid record—or dig themselves a deep hole
There’s a very good chance your son or daughter will get a credit card as soon as they enter college. You may even encourage them to get one for emergencies or to build up a credit history.
“Credit is something everybody needs,” says Ed Mierzwinski, consumer program director at the U.S. Public Interest Research Group. “But many young people are getting too much credit and are unable to handle it.”
According to Nellie Mae, a major provider of student loans, 76 percent of all college undergraduates started the 2004 school year with credit cards. The average outstanding balance on those cards was $2,169.
A couple of years ago, filmmaker James Scurlock swung through Atlanta as he was making “Maxed Out,” an award-winning indie film about America’s credit culture. What he found wasn’t so different from what he had seen everywhere else.
“Everywhere we went—black or white, rich or poor, Republican or Democrat—everyone is dealing with this same issue,” says Scurlock. “The problem pervades everywhere.”
THAT'S WHAT'S counterintuitive about the whole thing," says locally raised director James Scurlock about bankruptcy rates and the credit card business in his documentary Maxed Out. "Industry profits have skyrocketed. It's just this amazing story, very sinister. The poorest people and the most desperate are the most profitable [for lenders]." Scurlock, who now lives in L.A., became interested in the topics of predatory lending and bankruptcy after attending Wharton and working as a restaurant investor and freelance journalist.
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THAT'S WHAT'S counterintuitive about the whole thing," says locally raised director James Scurlock about bankruptcy rates and the credit card business in his documentary Maxed Out. "Industry profits have skyrocketed. It's just this amazing story, very sinister. The poorest people and the most desperate are the most profitable [for lenders]." Scurlock, who now lives in L.A., became interested in the topics of predatory lending and bankruptcy after attending Wharton and working as a restaurant investor and freelance journalist. 