It’s been a minute since Richard Linklater melted our brains with Waking Life or A Scanner Darkly. The Austin director has embarked us upon many a film journey, although with the likes of Dazed and Confused, Slacker and the Before Sunrise trilogy, there comes an association of his work as having a capacity for what he has termed the “youth rebellion continuum”. Meaning, a story told within the bounds of a 24-hour ever-important period that demonstrates the perpetual-yet-temporary nature of youth. Nature’s first green may be gold: “That’s what I love about these high school girls — I get older and they stay the same age,” being the bittersweet mixed message. That all being said and fondly remembered, the lifespan of youth is approached a little differently in Linklater’s latest film, Boyhood, which premiered at this year’s Sundance Film Festival. The story, as well as the time actually spent making the film, spans the childhood of its main character Mason. Played by young Ellar Cotraine, the project itself began back in 2002, and then continued on for a quite stunning 12 years in the making. It is a true coming of age story, where the six-year old actor originally cast into what is, quite literally, a coming of age story lets the audience also, quite literally, watch a boy grow up. Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke join the supporting cast in what critics are buzzing is an incredible journey in storytelling. Look out for the 163-minute Boyhood — which has also been appropriately referred to as “the 12-year project” — when it will be released this July.