Every year the world’s top athletes come together to compete for the title of best golfer on the planet. They are all 7-years-old, and in the first original documentary from Netflix their story will be told.

Directed by Josh Greenbaum, The Short Game follows a group of talented child athletes as they train for the World Championships of Junior Golf. The footage shown in the first trailer sets up the stories of the kids highlighted, but also emphasizes the intensity and stress found in each moment of competition. You can view the trailer, which debuted on The Movie Box, below.

The full synopsis for The Short Game reads:

THE SHORT GAME follows the lives of eight of the best 7-year-old golfers in the world as they train for and compete in the World Championships of Junior Golf. The annual tournament held at golfing mecca Pinehurst, North Carolina, brings in 1500 young golfers from 54 different countries and determines who will be crowned golfs next phenom. In its course, the eight stories entwine to form a fascinating and often funny portrait of a group of very young athletes and their families, in which the narrow-focused, peculiar and highly competitive junior golf subculture becomes both a window into contemporary global society and an inspiring reflection of the human condition.

If you ask me the claims of the above synopsis are a bit lofty, but as someone who doesn’t take much interest in sports I am completely on board for this film. The world of child athletes and the effects such competitions have on young minds is something too rarely documented on film. Comment below and let us know if you plan to add this film to your queue in the months ahead.

Netflix may have closed Red Envelope Entertainment, its film financing and acquisition arm, but the company clearly still has its eye on the indie film market. There will be at least one additional original documentary in the months to come (Sundance/Tiff favorite The Square), and it’s likely additional titles will follow after that. We’ll bring you more information as it becomes available.

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James Shotwell

James Shotwell is the founder of Under The Gun Review. He loves writing about music and movies almost as much as he loves his two fat cats. He's also the co-founder of Antique Records and the Marketing Coordinator for Haulix. You should probably follow him on Twitter.

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