Summer is the perfect time to escape the big city and make your way to the lake. That is why it’s the perfect time for filmmaker Megan Park’s latest project. Prime Video’s new teen drama, Sterling Point , brings a city girl into cottage country, where she confronts hidden family secrets and learns more about herself along the way. The eight-episode series is a solid and heartfelt coming-of-age story, with breathtaking Canadian scenery and a talented young cast at its core.
17-year-old Annie Jacobson ( Ella Rubin ) and her twin brother Connor ( Keen Ruffalo ) grew up in New York City. Their adoptive father, Steven (Jay Duplass), raised them. As summer begins, Annie gets disappointing news and consequently isn’t sure how to spend her time off school. But when a lawyer shows up with her estranged grandfather’s will, life takes an unexpected turn, and Annie leaves the big city and heads to her newly inherited Canadian island.
From the get-go, there is an intense amount of mystery and intrigue to be found in this teen drama. It starts as a quest for the truth about Annie’s past, but quickly turns into a more heartfelt coming-of-age tale. With the right emotional beats and moments of tension and strain, show creator Park proves to be a deft hand at delving into contemporary teen mindsets, while showcasing the greatness Muskoka has to offer.
Once Annie makes the rush decision to head north, she quickly finds herself out of her comfort zone. Like most teens, she thinks she already knows everything there is to know, particularly about what on the island must be like, but she finds out the hard way that there’s much left to understand and learn. After meeting the locals, Ellis (Jacob Whiteduck-Lavoie), Oona (Bo Bragason), and Sully (Nikko Angelo Hinayo) — finds out just how different and wonderful this small oasis can be. In fact, after reconnecting with old school friends, Rory (Daniel Quinn-Toye), and finding potential obstacles in Ramona ( Amélie Hoeferle ), Annie’s summer adventure proves to be throughly life changing.
Not content to have her audience sit back and relax, Park keeps things interesting throughout the series. From introducing Annie and her family to her new friends and foes along the way, the developed world of Sterling Point is done well and pays off consistently. Park not only creates that interest through storytelling, but she also makes great use of the breathtaking Canadian landscape. She takes us deep into the sparkling Muskoka lakes and numerous islands, and it’s impossible not to fall in love with what’s on offer, just like Annie does.
For Canadians, the environment and local mannerisms will likely feel familiar and comfortable. Moments will ring true — like U.S. gal Annie thinking Canada is a longer-than-two-hour flight from New York — and also showcase recognizable Canadianisms that will have audiences nodding in recognition. For those less familiar, the series lays things out so audiences can experience Muskoka (located in Central Ontario, a few hours north of Toronto) like the young teen at the centre of the story.
As much as world-building matters in an eight-episode series, the characters and the arcs they take can make or break the whole tale. Luckily, we are made to care about and connect with not just Annie, but all the secondary characters and their stories. The quirky, straight and confused teens have everything you would need to entertain. The innocence that comes with life’s unknowns. The immaturity that appears as they fight, drink and make rash decisions. The anger and jealousy as others get in their way. Not to mention family secrets, and most important for this generation, connection, sexual awakenings and emotional understanding.
The actors give the viewer the strongest point of connection, though. Rubin, Bragason, and Hoeferle all deliver strong performances, each bringing their own element of femininity to their complex characters. Most importantly, Rubin gives us an Annie who has seemingly not explored the world outside her sheltered home, despite living in New York City. And so gives the teen perhaps more layers than expected. Bragason and Hoeferle both register as intriguing characters within minutes of meeting them. Amid the series’ teenagers’ complex lives— family, friendships, sexuality, and sexual relationships—these two also become important touchpoints as queer representation for young audiences.
From The Fallout (2021) to My Old Ass (2024), Park continues to create worlds in her storytelling that feel like genuine, accurate portraits of contemporary humanity. Particularly what it is like to be young in the twenty-first century. Representation on screen matters, and her work delivers that in authentic spades. Though Sterling Point begins as a run-of-the-mill family drama, it becomes an exploration of coming into your own and finding your place in the world. By making that narrative shift successfully, the series becomes a good addition to the pantheon of coming-of-age takes, but with bigger twists and turns than you would expect.
Sterling Point is now streaming on Prime Video and has already been renewed for a second season.
