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The Perfect Neighbor's new trailer offers a gut punch as it pulls back the curtain on a real neighborhood dispute that spiraled into tragedy. Directed by Geeta Gandbhir, the documentary uses raw police bodycam footage to show how repeated complaints led to lethal violence in Central Florida.
The film follows Susan Lorincz, a white resident who repeatedly called in law enforcement against her Black neighbors' children who would play in the playground. The trailer opens with a mounting tension between fear, racial discrimination, property lines and laws in Florida about disputes and defense. Archival phone calls, bodycam interactions and neighborhood footage show a community before and after the outrage. Ajike Owens, a 35 year old Black mother of four becomes the central figure after Lorincz, claiming threats and harassment fatally shoots Owens through a locked door.
Talking about the project, Gandbhir told Tudum,
“The Perfect Neighbor is a deeply personal project, created to transform grief into purpose and honor the lasting legacy of Ajike Owens and her family. My team at Message Pictures, along with our incredible partners at SO’B Productions and Park Pictures, are thrilled the film will be available on Netflix, offering audiences worldwide the chance to experience this urgent and powerful story.”
The real story behind The Perfect Neighbor
The real incident behind The Perfect Neighbor took place in 2023, in the quiet neighborhood of Ocala, Florida, and quickly became a nationwide debate on race, justice, and the limits of self defense. Thirty five year old Ajike Shantrell Owens was shot through a locked door by her fifty eight year old white neighbor, Susan Lorincz. The confrontation began with an argument because of the former's children playing in the nearby field, which led to Lorincz acting hostile towards the children and Owens soon intervened.
Neighbors testified that Lorincz was often bitter about Owens' children playing around, and that she had previously called the police many times over the issue. When authorities arrived on the scene, they were already acting on a previous call from Lorincz's about trespassing.
After more than a year of proceedings, an all-White jury found Lorincz guilty of manslaughter in August of 2024. She was sentenced to twenty five years in prison as she continues to serve as of now. The case started several national debates about the laws of defense, and instances of racial discrimination among neighborhoods. Questions arose about the country's lax gun laws and the defense of habitation law, as many demanded and called for a revaluation of these legalities.
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The Perfect Neighbor premiered at Sundance 2025, winning the U.S. Documentary Directing Award, and will be released in select theaters on October 10, 2025, then on Netflix October 17.
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