"...to measure up to our own standards was the only way of affirming our notion of manhood."

Ralph Ellison
"Shadow and Act"

Ellison, known as L, is a smart, carefree 18-year-old who has been brought up by his proud and loving father, Sam, since the death of his mother when he was just five. Father and son share a relationship that fulfills and nourishes them both, and that insulates L from many of the world's harsh realities. But when tragedy strikes, L faces a drastically different life. As he faces basic issues of survival, L confronts his future, and the decisions he makes in desperation will change him forever. L faces a battle within himself, and against the forces around him. He is an UNKNOWN SOLDIER on a cold and unforgiving battlefield - the streets of Harlem.

UNKNOWN SOLDIER is the engaging and quietly powerful feature film debut from writer, director, and producer Ferenc Toth, who previously produced the critically acclaimed MANITO. Drawing upon his experiences on MANITO, lauded at Sundance and many other festivals for its compelling dialogue and intensity, Toth has brought to life a character who embodies the struggle so many youths contend with as they deal with the burdens of independence and responsibility in their journey from boyhood to manhood. Starring Carl Louis, Layla Edwards, Randy Clark, and Postell Pringle in breakout roles, UNKNOWN SOLDIER is produced by Sean Bachrodt, with cinematography by Steve Carillo (MANITO), editing by Frank Reynolds (IN THE BEDROOM) and Sam Neave (CRY FUNNY HAPPY) and an evocative score by Peter Calandra (DOWN AT THE TRACKS). UNKNOWN SOLDIER will World Premiere at the Miami Film Festival and have its West Coast Premiere at the Santa Barbara Film Festival, where the programmers have likened its intense portrayal of a young man on a search for self and survival to Truffaut's 400 BLOWS.

After a devastating tragedy, L's world is turned upside down. Whatever dreams he had will have to be put on hold as he struggles to survive. He tries to follow his father's disciplined example to work hard and ask no one for any favors. Although he works at a string of low-paying jobs, he loses the apartment he called home. Alone, he first stays with friends, but bad luck and pride force him onto the streets. His one bright spot is the emotional support he gets from Tande, his girlfriend. L's tragedy has deepened their bond, and Tande even shelves her hard-won plans to go South for college, despite her mother's strong objections.

L is grateful for Tande's support, but he's tired of struggling for every crumb and scared he'll end up on the streets. Following a brief stay at a homeless shelter, L hits rock bottom and tries to enlist in the Army, but his asthma disqualifies him. Desperate, with his future seeming as bleak as could be, L turns to Zee, an old neighbor. Zee is charismatic, generous and, having come up from the streets himself, is sympathetic to L's plight, and steps into the gaping hole of L's own fears. Despite his good qualities, though, Zee is still a gangsta. Although the gangsta life has never attracted L, in light of his current circumstances, Zee is holding a lifeline. He offers L a job as his driver and personal assistant. L takes the job, in his innocence and naivete thinking he can keep his life separate from the life Zee leads. Tande, unable to discern the depths of L's despair, can't understand how he could work for Zee, knowing where it will inevitably lead. Like her mother, she has strong and uncompromising views on right and wrong. When L ignores her warning, she leaves for college without even saying goodbye.

This latest crushing blow pushes L further into Zee's world, and further away from the world he once took for granted. Despite the violence that is a thrumming undercurrent in the gangsta world, L feels a bond with Zee. But one crucial event on the battlefield that often erupts on the streets of Harlem will force L to make a critical decision, a decision that could imperil his life, a decision that turns him into an UNKNOWN SOLDIER in a fight for the life he took for granted.