Behavioral Health & Recovery Services Blog

Hello Directing Change partners!

I hope you are well! Now that our submission period has ended for the Directing Change annual Film Contest, we wanted to share March’s Hope & Justice prompt: “Hope for Change.” We are looking for art pieces exploring mental health, hope, resilience, and change.   In preparation for Mental Health Awareness month in May, we are asking for submissions to creatively incorporate a lime green ribbon, as lime green is the color that represents mental health. Please share this opportunity with young people ages 12-24 that might be interested and your networks! The deadline to submit to “Hope for Change” is March 31^st!

Here are some ideas to help youth get started with their piece:

• What can you do to promote better mental health and reduce stigma?  Share your thoughts on actions that individuals, families, communities or organizations can or should take to make a difference.
• Look back on who you were a year ago and the person you are today. How do these two versions of yourself compare?
• Looking forward, as a result of adversity or difficult times you experienced over the past year, how have you changed?
• Imagine giving advice to your past self about a challenging situation you went through. What would you say to yourself?
• Share a positive change you have made in your life and how you worked toward that goal.
• Explore the healthy ways that you have used to cope with change during the past year.

You can find out more on our website about this month’s prompt and how to submit. Thank you for your support, and please let us know if you have any questions!

The program is part of statewide efforts to prevent suicide, reduce stigma and discrimination related to mental illness, and to promote the mental health and wellness of students. These initiatives are funded by counties through the Mental Health Services Act (Prop 63) and administered by the California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA), an organization of county governments working to improve mental health outcomes for individuals, families, and communities.