The Art of Getting By is a 2011 American romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Gavin Wiesen in his feature directorial debut,[2] and starring Freddie Highmore, Emma Roberts, Michael Angarano, Elizabeth Reaser, Sam Robards, Rita Wilson, and Blair Underwood.

The film follows George (Highmore), a lonely high school senior who forms an unlikely bond with a popular classmate, Sally (Roberts).

George Zinavoy is a lonely senior at a Manhattan preparatory school with a penchant for drawing and a nihilistic worldview.

Obsessed with the inevitability of death, he never does homework and skips school frequently; as a result, he is placed on academic probation.

As George continually avoids Sally and ignores her calls, she meets with Dustin at a bar one evening and flirts with him.

The film's story is inspired by Gavin Wiesen's childhood growing up in New York and spending summers in East Hampton.

[3] Wiesen finished writing the script in 2006 and secured a producer in 2008, with financing for the film taking another year to come together.

The website's critics consensus reads, "A sitcom-level twee mess that bakes in the typical manic pixie dream girl and boring, withdrawn boy hero.

"[11] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 36 out of 100, based on 28 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.

Criticism also centered on the writing, though actor Freddie Highmore and his co-star Emma Roberts were both praised for their performances.

Edward Douglas of ComingSoon.net noted, "A New York City boy-meets-girl story may be something we've seen many times before and often better, but Wiesen brings something unique to the mix.