SPRINGFIELD — When Springfield’s New Leadership Charter School was unceremoniously shuttered in 2013, English teacher Wade Wofford knew that he needed to raise awareness about the plight of his displaced students. Fortunately, Wofford is also a veteran independent filmmaker and screenwriter, who would spend the next decade painstakingly crafting “URBAN ED,” an unflinching glimpse into the lives of four inner-city teenagers set adrift by the closure of their high school.
Filmed on a microbudget and featuring a cast drawn from local high schools, “URBAN ED” was inspired by the closing of the charter school where Wofford taught. The Republican spoke to Wofford ahead of the film’s upcoming world premiere.
