Stumbled apon this.
Apologies if this has already been posted.
Here is a link to the trailer...
https://vimeo.com/215891572
Here is one description of the plot...
Certain right wing scolds love to claim that modern life would be so
much better if organized religion was allowed to exert a greater
presence. “Confessions of A Teenage Jesus Jerk” shows in one very
tragicomic story how such everyday religious incursion would be a curse.
Actor Eric Stoltz makes his directorial debut adapting San Francisco
author Tony Dushane’s semi-autobiographical novel of the same name. Its
setting is the Reagan era San Francisco Bay Area. High schooler Gabe,
the Dushane stand-in, is a teenage Jehovah’s Witness. His father
happens to be one of the local congregation’s Elders. However, thriving
in his religious Fellowship proves less important to Gabe than his
growing curiosity regarding masturbation and other sexual matters. Of
particular importance is his unrequited crush on fellow teen Witness
Jasmine.
It’s said a system’s strength can be found in how it handles
breakdowns in its operations. In Gabe’s case, the religion he was
steeped in proves particularly inadequate in explaining or de-mystifying
the contradictions of sexual desire. One memorably ludicrous moment
sees Gabe’s father counseling a husband greatly concerned about having
committed sodomy with his wife. But things prove far less funny for
Gabe when he becomes a scapegoat for female Witnesses’ embarrassment
over experiencing awakened sexual desires.
Gabe’s story follows his gradual re-assessment of his treating his
religious fervor as integral to his personal identity. Free-spirited
cousin Karen shepherds his sexual awakening as well as his introduction
to the then-burgeoning City punk scene. After Gabe gets temporarily
expelled from the congregation, the expulsion may have been aimed at
crushing his spirit and increase his craving to not make waves in the
future. But getting exposed to the poetry of Kerouac shows the teen
that spiritual awakening is not the private preserve of the Witnesses.
Seeing the word “Masturbation” in flashing neon above an Elder’s head
doesn’t mean the film rejects the religious urge. Religion is just one
way of making the universe understandable to people. But Stoltz’ film
has little love for religious desire being twisted into a means of
controlling others’ behavior.