by Alex Billington
April 22, 2026
Source: YouTube
“The flag is for all of us.” 🇺🇸 Indeed it is. Abramorama has unveiled the official trailer for the documentary film about America called Flag Day, made by the filmmaker duo Andrew & Melissa Shea – known as Shea & Shea. It’s being released in theaters starting in June coinciding with the upcoming US Flag Day on June 14th in the summer. The film is a timely and deeply human portrait of community, identity, and tradition in contemporary America. Set in the small farming community of Three Oaks, Michigan near Chicago (see Google Maps) — home to the nation’s largest Flag Day parade (visit their website) — Flag Day is a verité doc portrait of ritual, identity, and belonging in an era of deep political division. Filmed in an observational, verité style, Flag Day captures moments of humor, conflict, and grace as the community prepares for its defining ritual, offering a ground-level portrait of civic life that holds both the good and the hard truths of being American. The directors state: “Flag Day began as an effort to listen closely to a community coming together around a shared tradition, and to better understand what that ritual reveals about who we are.” It looks like the kind of wholesome and humble storytelling we could use more of – reminding us we’re all one.
Here’s the official trailer (+ poster) for Andrew & Melissa Shea’s doc film Flag Day, direct from YouTube:
Set in the small farming community of Three Oaks, Michigan — home to the nation’s largest Flag Day parade — the Flag Day documentary film is a verité portrait of ritual, identity, and belonging in an era of deep political division. Somewhere between tradition and transformation lies this village, whose annual parade has become a pageant of American aspiration and memory. Over the course of Flag Day weekend, the film immerses viewers in the lives of a diverse cross-section of townspeople: veterans, local business owners, marching bands, and volunteers who, for one weekend each June, create an event that is at once nostalgic and reflective of the tensions of our time. Their stories reveal both the beauty and the fragility of community life in a time of polarization. Flag Day was filmed in an observational, verité style, capturing moments of humor, conflict, and grace as the community prepares for its defining ritual. The film offers a ground-level portrait of civic life — a vivid portrait that holds both the good and the hard truths of being American. The project asks what binds us together today and whether those bonds can still be renewed. 🇺🇸
Flag Day is co-directed and edited by filmmakers Andrew Shea & Melissa Shea, both of the films Santa Fe, Forfeit, Portrait of Wally, Wrestling Alligators, Buzz, and I’ll Be There previously. It’s also produced by Shea & Shea. Shot by Margaret Byrne. Abramorama will release Flag Day in select US theaters starting June 12th, 2026, with more cities to follow across the country. The release aligns with the national lead-up to Flag Day on June 14, underscoring the film’s timely resonance. For details visit the film’s official site.
