Behavioral Health & Recovery Services Blog

Suicide is preventable. However, people may not know exactly how to prevent suicide and save a life. A simple yet powerful film can change that.

A creative upcoming opportunity for suicide prevention is the Each Mind Matters “Directing Change” Film Contest. In this statewide contest, youth ages 16-25 are asked to create a 60 second film to prevent suicide and to advocate for youth experiencing mental illness. A new addition to this year’s film contest is the submission category called, “Through the Lens of Culture.” This category prompts youth and young adults to tell the story of suicide prevention and mental illness through the lens of a particular culture.

In order to support film making efforts, suicide prevention and educational resources will be given to participating schools and organizations.

What will the winners receive? In addition to cash prizes, winners will go on a trip to Sacramento, where their film will be showcased at a red carpet ceremony. Winning youth advocates will also have the opportunity to speak to policy makers about suicide prevention and mental illness. Submissions are due March 1, 2016.

If you are interested, take some time and check-out past film submissions from San Mateo County youth.

Let’s spread the word about this critical and exciting opportunity! Why? Because, together, we can make sure that people in San Mateo County “Speak Up and Save a Life.”

For more information contact Sylvia Leung at sleung@smcgov.org or Angelica Delgado at adelgado@smcgov.org.