Semifinalists in Entertainment Industries Council’s Generation Next Competition Receive Rare Entertainment Industry Mentoring Opportunity
California students learn to reduce stigma and discrimination around mental health while practicing their craft
Los Angeles, CA (3/12/14) – The Generation Next competition has culminated in more than 100 proposal submissions from students in colleges and universities across California. Today, the 12 semifinalists in three disciplines of Film & Television, Journalism and Social Media were announced in Los Angeles. A program of the Entertainment Industries Council, Inc. (EIC), as part of its TEAM Up (Tools for Entertainment And Media) campaign, Generation Next was created to inspire future content creators to bring the power and influence of entertainment and journalism to better communicate about these health issues.
“These students are addressing serious mental health concerns that are directly impacting many of their peers. Their goal is to reduce stigma and discrimination through accurate and compelling portrayals of mental illness and mental health recovery within the underserved populations of Native American, Asian-American and Pacific Islander, African-American, Latino and LGBTQ. The concepts they are creating to reach their peers are eye-opening,” said TEAM Up Project Director and EIC Exec. VP of Government Relations and Program Services, Marie Gallo Dyak.
Proposed stories and social media campaigns included a broad range of topics such as mental illness among Native Americans, students with mental illness transitioning from high school to college, depression among LGBTQ youth, schizophrenia and youth, the stigma of mental illness in the Asian American community, depression resulting from bullying, combatting eating disorders, and “being different, yet unafraid and strong,” according to reviewers.
In the category of Journalism, semifinalists are: James Macias (Fullerton College), Kyle McCarty (Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo), Kellie McCown (Los Medanos College), and Madison Whaley (Humboldt State).
In the category of Film/TV, semifinalists are: Jacob Wilson (College of the Sequoias), Ronja Jansz (Santa Monica College), Elsie Dortelius (Loyola Marymount University), and Isabel Fisher (UC Davis).
In the category of Social Media, semifinalists are: Jessica Kwack (Cal State Northridge), Rachel Jean Firchau, Christine Liu, and Tessa Urbanovich (Chapman University).
Semifinalists are now working with a team of professional mentors in the creative and mental health fields who will guide them and provide valuable feedback to ensure that students develop their stories and campaigns to their fullest potential. They have until March 24th to complete their projects.
“The overall goal of the Generation Next program is to change the conversation around mental health on college campuses. This can best be accomplished by having the students themselves explore, through their own lenses, the stories that deeply resonate with them,” Dyak concluded.
Judges will convene in early April to select one winner in each category. Each winner will receive a $4,000 cash award and will be recognized at the PRISM Awards ceremony on April 22nd.
About Generation Next
Generation Next, a program of the EIC as a part of its TEAM Up campaign, is supported by the California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA), an organization of county governments working to improve mental health among Californians. The Generation Next website is http://www.eiconline.org/teamup/gen-next/.
About Entertainment Industries Council
EIC is a non-profit organization founded in 1983 by leaders within the entertainment industry to bring the power and influence of the industry to communicate about health and social issues. The organization is considered to be the chief pioneer of entertainment and journalism outreach and a premiere success story in the field of entertainment education. This mission relies on providing resource information to the creative community and culminates in recognition of the industry through the national television special PRISM Showcase which addresses accurate portrayals of substance use issues and mental health concerns. The organization also produces the SET Awards, honoring positive and non-stereotypical portrayals of science, engineering and technology.
For a complete list of health and social issues addressed by EIC and local projects please visit First Draft and EIC’s website. EIC’s web site is www.eiconline.org. The PRISM Awards web site is www.prismawards.com. The SET Awards web site is www.eicsetawards.com
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Media Contacts
Skylar Jackson, 703-481-1414, sjackson@eiconline.org
Larry Deutchman, 818-861-7782, ldeutch@eiconline.org