If a youth in your care is in crisis, please call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. For additional crisis resources, warmlines and apps visit our resource page or download the Teen Guide to Mental Health and Wellness.
If your school has experienced a suicide and you are looking for crisis support, please contact us.
To get started with participating in the Directing Change Film Contest, please sign up as an advisor by creating your advisor profile. If you have already created a profile, please visit your Advisor Home page.
Before proceeding with implementing this contest, curriculum, or any suicide prevention activity in your school, be sure to review the protocol and procedures in place at your district and school for addressing the needs of students who are in an emotional crisis. Here are a few helpful resources:
Additional resources can be found on the Youth Creating Change website at www.youthcreatingchange.org, including:
- Crisis support and resources to support students, schools, and communities after a suicide loss
- Suicide prevention, intervention, and postvention trainings for districts, schools, and community-based organizations
- Educational resources and lesson plans
- Awareness resources, such as film handouts, and Mental Health Awareness Month and Suicide Prevention Week Toolkits
- Resources for parents and others with youth in their care
Spread the Word
Here are a few resources to help you promote the contest. For additional resources or parent letter templates, please contact us.
Filmmaking Resources
Find tips to help students write, film, and edit their videos, as well as recommended resources for software and royalty-free sounds in our Filmmaking Guide.
Educational Resources
For lesson plans about mental health, suicide prevention, and various other topics, visit our Learning Lab and see the resources below.
- Video: “Mental Health Continuum” Educational Video
- Video: “Mental Illness & Stigma” Educational Video
- Website: Youth Suicide Prevention Website Never a Bother
- Video: Suicide Prevention 101 Video
- Video: Suicide Prevention How to Help a Friend Video
- Video: What Happens When You Call 988 Video
Other Film Festivals
We encourage you to submit your film to other contests and film festivals!
Mental Health, Suicide Prevention & Substance Use Topics:
Open Mind Film Festival
- The Open Mind Film Festival for high school students is presented by The Friends of the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior at UCLA. […] The 6th Annual Open Mind Film Festival is open to high school students throughout the United States and accepts submissions of short films (5 minutes or less) on the topic of mental health and wellness.
Slick Rock
- The Slick Rock Student Film Festival is Central California’s premier film competition for middle and high school students in Fresno, Kern, Kings, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, and Tulare Counties. It is a program of the Tulare County Office of Education with major support from the Tulare County Suicide Prevention Task Force.
The Red Ribbon Campus Video PSA Contest
- The Red Ribbon Campus Video PSA Contest is cosponsored by DEA and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. This annual contest is for colleges and universities to promote the importance of preventing alcohol and other drug misuse among college students. As part of the contest, schools create and submit a video PSA showcasing their campus’s commitment to a healthy, drug-free lifestyle. There are cash award prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place. The contest starts September 8.
Others:
All American High School Film Festival
- “The All American High School Film Festival is the premier destination for talented high school filmmakers and media arts enthusiasts from around the world. Our Mission is to provide immersive education with a profound impact, connecting the filmmakers of the future with the rewards, respect, and recognition they deserve.”
Burbank International Film Festival
- “The Burbank International Film Festival (BIFF) is proud to have a distinguished Advisory Board and Board of Directors comprised of accomplished industry professionals and production executives working within the studio system. Our commitment to excellence extends to our festival judges, screening committees, and many of our volunteers, who are also respected professionals in the film and television industry.” (Note: awards presented by BIFF include the U.S. High School Student Filmmaker Award and the California Student Young Filmmaker Award.)
Calabasas Film Festival
- “The Calabasas Film Festival, a non-profit headquartered in the heart of where film lives, welcomes avid film goers, studio executives and key players in the entertainment industry to the ultimate festival experience. CFF is also dedicated to honoring the future of the industry by empowering young filmmakers with a platform for outreach through student screenings and events.”
California Student Media Festival
- “The California Student Media Festival seeks to transform preK-12 student learning, recognizing creativity and student agency through the cultivation and celebration of original work.”
Film Independent Future Filmmakers
- “Film Independent Future Filmmakers brings to the big screen the best films made by emerging young filmmakers from across the country and around the globe. The showcase is a curated program of short films made by high school students. The films are selected by a committee of professional filmmakers as well as youth curators from Los Angeles.”
Fine Cut Festival
- “This festival is a tribute to Fine Cut founder, Jack Larson. In the late 1990s, actor, librettist, screenwriter and producer Jack Larson had the idea of creating a student film series that would provide talented students with the much-needed opportunity to have their short films selected for television broadcast.” (Note: participants must attend or have recently graduated from a school in Southern California)
High Tide Student Film Festival
- The Aquarium of the Pacific is excited to invite Southern California high school students in grades 9-12 to participate in its fifth annual High Tide Student Film Festival. Individuals or small teams of 2-4 students are challenged to create a short three-minute video on one of three ocean-themed topics.
iVIE Awards & Student Film Festival
- “iVIE is a K-12 student video competition and festival conceived to encourage and reward teachers and students who recognize the power of video as a creative educational tool. iVIE receives 500 submissions annually, which are judged by media arts professionals and curated by Media Arts Center San Diego.”
LA Student Film Fest
- “The LA Student Film Festival celebrates the works of current high school, undergrad, and graduate film students.”
Making Movies That Matter Youth Short Film Festival
- “MMTM is open to all K-16 students within CD12 and the West San Fernando Valley. CD12 Communities Include: Chatsworth / Porter Ranch / Northridge / North Hills / West Hills / Granada Hills and Sherwood Forest. In addition, K-12 public and private schools outside CD12 boundaries who are interested in submitting films can do so as an independent entry. The goal of MMTM is to inspire students to identify issues and topics that resonate with them and to have their passion manifest itself in films that affect people and hopefully make a difference in the world around them.”
National Film Festival for Talented Youth (NFFTY)
- “NFFTY has grown into the world’s largest film festival for emerging directors. Each year the festival showcases films by directors 24 and under. NFFTY supports young filmmakers by offering professional level workshops year-round. In addition, NFFTY.org hosts filmmaker resources, tips, news and information.”
Newport Beach Film Festival Youth Film Showcase
- “Launched in 2005, the Youth Film Showcase spotlights short narrative, documentary and animated films, music videos and PSA’s created by filmmakers 18 years and younger. The Festival is thrilled to celebrate the artistic works and visions of young people from around the world. Through the exhibition of youth-created media, the Festival seeks to create a forum for young filmmakers and encourage freedom of expression through cinema.”
TVT Southern California High School Film Festival
- “The Annual TVT Southern California High School Film Festival aims to provide a platform for young high school filmmakers to showcase their work, receive feedback and inspire others. The Innovation Institute at TarbutV’Torah (TVT) in Irvine is putting on this festival as a way of bringing together the many excellent high school film programs in the area. The TVT Southern California High School Film Festival strives to provide a larger audience, more immediate feedback, and a culture of creativity in the Orange County area for devoted young artists.”
Westflix
- “Westflix is a celebration of the best short films produced by high school students throughout California, curated and organized by student festival directors, board members, club members, and faculty advisors at Harvard-Westlake School in Studio City, CA.”
YoungArts
- “YoungArts is one of the only organizations in the U.S. that supports artists across 10 disciplines at all stages of development. […] Artists ages 15-18, or grades 10-12, in the U.S. are encouraged to apply in the discipline of their choice. All applications are evaluated by esteemed discipline-specific panels of artists. […] Award winners are offered a lifetime of artistic support and ongoing connection with an extraordinarily robust network of peers and mentors.”
Youth Diversity Film Festival
- The Annual Youth Diversity Film Festival for middle and high School students is presented by Robert McCune, Director of the BHERC Youth Diversity Film Festival. These aspiring young filmmakers study their craft at organizations and schools across the globe. BHERC is proud to spotlight shorts created by diverse youth.”