THE STORY – It’s Girl Scout Cookie season, and four tenacious girls strive to be a top-selling “Cookie Queen,” navigating an $800 million business in which childhood and ambition collide.
THE CAST – N/A
THE TEAM – Alysa Nahmias (Director/Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 91 Minutes
At the sweet heart of Alysa Nahmias’s documentary, “Cookie Queens,” is a delightful story of friendship, sisterhood, and ambition. Centered on the Girl Scout Cookie Program, an $800 million business in the United States, “Cookie Queens” introduces us to a promising future through nuanced observations of girlhood. Nahmias follows four Girl Scouts during cookie-selling season. The girls, aged 5 to 12, trade playtimes and social lives to sell cookies around the clock. With entrepreneurial spirit and ingenuity, the girls and their families set out to achieve goals under tight deadlines. The adorable charm of “Cookie Queens” gives way to a deeper, more thoughtful message about the girls’ personal journeys. There’s a genuine warmth in how Nahmias defines her approach through small gestures and authentic observations. “Cookie Queens” is a wondrous documentary that meets kids at their level and lets them lead the way.
The documentary introduces us to the unique hopes and dreams of four Girl Scouts and their families. Five-year-old Ara from San Diego, California, sets a goal to sell 55 boxes, and part of her strategy is playing the piano to attract buyers. Nine-year-old Nikki from Chino, California, aspires to follow in her oldest sister’s footsteps and earn the local “cookie queen” trophy. The sisters’ relationship dynamics are incredibly joyous and insightful. In one standout scene, Nikki watches from afar as her sisters make a social media video together, speaking to just how much she looks up to them. Twelve-year-old Olive is known as the “cookie queen” of Charlotte, North Carolina, having sold over 12,000 boxes. She dreams of being a Supreme Court Justice one day. Eight-year-old Shannon Elizabeth from El Paso, Texas, aims to sell over 2,000 boxes and win a cookie camp prize that her parents cannot afford. The varied locations, combined with gorgeous cinematography by Antonio Cisneros, paint a lively portrait of the girls’ cookie-selling routines and personal hobbies.
Nahmias’s observational direction lets the girls’ personalities shine bright and protects the authenticity of their voices. She forgoes the use of talking-head interviews and archival footage, apart from an opening credits montage that visualizes the over 100-year longevity of the Girl Scout program. Nahmias instead finds incredible storytelling power in candid moments. Small gestures between kids and parents add layers of sincerity and tenderness. Vulnerable conversations reveal a mix of both excitement and doubt around being a Girl Scout. In a particularly insightful scene, Olive and her mom discuss the future of cookie-selling. Olive feels pressured to sell more cookies and does not want to let her mom down. The camera stays focused on Olive’s perspective in this moment, underscoring the space of trust and honesty that Nahmias has crafted.
With this candid approach, “Cookie Queens” maintains focus on the girls’ individual journeys as they learn life lessons, make new friends, and figure out who they want to be. Nahmias also does not shy away from the uncertainties around sustaining this business, showing us the not-so-adorable moments of cookie-selling. The documentary intersects cheerful cookie booths and creative sales pitches with the pressure of family struggles and high-stakes capitalism. In one of the most moving scenes, Shannon Elizabeth’s parents worry about potentially having to pay back cookie boxes when there’s a mortgage payment hovering over them. Shannon Elizabeth’s mom quickly ends the conversation when she hears her daughter about to enter the room. The moment speaks to a reverberating reality of what parents sacrifice for their children to succeed and follow their dreams.
The Girl Scout cookie business relies on the tireless work of these girls and the support of their families to generate annual profits. The documentary makes a concentrated effort to show just how much time, passion, and creativity go into each sale. There’s a bigger picture beyond the dollars earned, which can be felt in a scene where Olivia explains why the cookie program is impactful to her. She explains that she met her best friend while selling Girl Scout cookies. Additionally, as a girl who contributes to the business and makes little profit, she wants to know where the money goes. She strives to be part of the decision-making for cookie programming to help shape the future of Girl Scouts. The cookie sales also speak to identity as a recurring theme that Nahmias explores. So much of what we observe in the girls’ personalities is defined by their achievements. The documentary captures a resonating moment of doubt Olivia shares with her best friend: if she is not the top seller, who is she?
“Cookie Queens” excels at balancing a light-hearted energy with thought-provoking musings on entrepreneurial sacrifice and ambition. By maintaining the girls’ perspectives front and center, Alysa Nahmias tells a sweet story of girlhood through the lens of a multi-million dollar cookie industry. Her candidness personalizes the Girl Scouts, illuminating the hard work and colorful, dream-filled aspirations that go into selling each box.
