Produced by Ted Balaker
Directed by Courtney Moorehead Balaker
Rob Henderson seemed headed to prison or worse. He was born to a drug-addicted mother and grew up in 10 different foster homes. Like so many of his friends, he could have ended up dead or behind bars.
Then one day 17-year-old Rob showed up hungover to take a military entrance exam. He aced it, and enlisted in the Air Force where he was quickly promoted. Although his struggles were far from over, he went on to accomplish the impossible — he graduated from Yale and earned a PhD from Cambridge University. He is the very first foster kid to accomplish that feat.
Rob escaped one dysfunctional environment (foster care) and entered another (the Ivy League).
He grew up in the underclass and then found himself living among the social elite. Along the way, he learned a lot about status, family, and the things that matter most.
Now Rob is teaming up with award-winning filmmakers Ted and Courtney Balaker to turn his bestselling memoir, Troubled, into a feature film.
Filmmakers Ted Balaker and Courtney Moorehead Balaker are devoted to making important ideas entertaining. They have collaborated with many artists including Catherine Keener, Larry David, Jon Hamm, Kristin Bell, Drew Carey, Jeanne Tripplehorn, David Crosby, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Penn Jillette, and Gilbert Gottfried.
One of their films was the subject of a bipartisan congressional screening on Capitol Hill. Another set the Guinness World Record for largest film screening.
Their films have been amplified by outlets ranging from NBC's TODAY Show to the Joe Rogan Experience, and praised by Seth MacFarlane, John Cleese, George Will, Steven Pinker, members of Congress, and by many publications, including The San Francisco Chronicle, Variety, and The Hollywood Reporter. They have been released in theaters and on many popular platforms, including Netflix, Prime Video, and Apple TV.
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