AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) through its Black Leadership AIDS Crisis Coalition (BLACC) and Young Moviemakers of America (YMA) have joined forces to work with local Dallas area youth to produce a short documentary focused on the impact of gentrification on Black American youth. The short documentary is scheduled to premiere on Saturday, April 9, 2022 at 1:30pm at Youth World located at 1121 W. Whitehead Rd., Dallas, Texas.
(April 7, 2022) Dallas, Texas – The Black Leadership AIDS Crisis Coalition powered by AIDS Healthcare Foundation has joined forces with the Compton, California based organization, Young Moviemakers of America (YMA) to work with Duncanville high school students, through a partnership with the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas, to guide them through an immersive, rigorous program, teaching them the skills of filmmaking while creating a 20-minute, short documentary, scheduled to have its red-carpet premiere on Saturday, April 9, 2022, starting at 1:30pm at Youth World, 1121 W. Whitehead Rd., Dallas, Texas.
Over the last 2 months, the young people in the program have worked with YMA Founder, Moon, and the YMA team to both learn the basic fundamentals of filmmaking and film the short documentary focused on the impact of gentrification on Black youth in the metropolitan Dallas community. The student participants were taken through a series of weekly virtual and in-person sessions and learned basic skills around editing, filming, directing, and producing. Like other films produced by YMA program participants, the Dallas area students’ film will exemplify the “for the youth, by the youth” slogan that is the basis of YMA’s program, telling the stories from the lens of the youth.
WHAT: Red-Carpet Premiere of the Youth Directed and Produced Documentary by local Dallas
Area high school students
Note: The film will address the issue of gentrification from the lens of high school students
WHEN: Saturday, April 9, 2022
Complimentary Food and Entertainment begins at 1:30pm
Screening and Q & A with youth participants begins at 3:00pm
WHERE: Youth World, 1121 W. Wheatland Rd., Dallas, Texas 75232
WHO: Moon, Founder, Young Moviemakers of America
Anita Castille, Vice-President, AIDS Healthcare Foundation
Lauren Hogan, National Liaison, Black Leadership AIDS Crisis Coalition (BLACC)
Juliet Mwai, Chair, BLACC-Dallas Chapter
Student participants from Ducanville High School
Youth and family attendees from across metropolitan Dallas
Twenty-three year old recording artist and filmmaker Moon, founded YMA in 2016, when she was only sixteen years old, to continue her passion for the art-form and her mission of exposing youth with opportunities to write authentic stories, gain skills in various production roles and build 21st century skills needed to compete in today’s rapidly changing economy. Since its inception YMA has worked with numerous young people throughout southern California and youth participants have produced several films including The Beauty in Me, Laced Up, More Than a Sport and The Light at the End of the Tunnel. In 2018, YMA and AHF first partnered to have young people in the organizations Healthy Housing Foundation (HHF) apartment complex produce a film on the impact of homelessness on young people. As a result of the success of the collaboration, the 2 organizations continued to collaborate and launched a national initiative, taking YMA programming to other communities, including the partnership with the YMCA of Metropolitan Dallas and with H.O.P.E to New Heights, a youth serving agency in metropolitan Atlanta.
“Young people hold the future in their hand and often times are not given the opportunity to express their thoughts and feelings around how the many social justice and human rights issues of the present are impacting them and their peers,” stated Anita Castille, AHF Vice-President and liaison with YMA. “Through this powerful collaboration, young people get to both authentically tell their stories, and learn the fundamentals of filmmaking, a multi-billion-dollar industry. The partnership is truly a win-win!”
Saturday’s premiere starts at 1:30pm with the screening and Q & A session with the student participant’s starting at 3:00pm. Featuring complimentary food, drinks and entertainment, the event is free and open to the public. To learn more about the event go to blaccymadallas.eventbrite.com.
To learn more about BLACC visit BLACC.net. To learn more about Young Moviemakers of America visit youngmoviemakersofamerica.com.
