2017 Directing Change Film Contest Winners

Showcasing the new Through the Lens of Culture category winners in the Directing Change film contest.

June 6, 2017

In 2017, Culture to Culture Foundation again had the honor to be in partnership with Directing Change for a state-wide contest which engaged high school students and young adults throughout California to learn about the warning signs of suicide, mental health, and how to help a friend by creating short films about these topics. This year, the contest received 456 films, representing 1343 youth from 110 schools and organizations across California.

On May 11, Chia-Chia Chien, founder of C to C, and her honored invited guests Ms. Mina Li, the Marketing Director of KTSF and Mr. Steve Martinez, a videographer from KTSF attended the "Red Carpet" award ceremony in San Diego. And on behalf of C to C, Chia-Chia had the honor to present the award to the winning students of the C to C sponsored category of "Through the Lens of Culture".  

KTSF will broadcast a 3-segment special program to introduce the state-wide mental health video contest to our community. The  program is mostly in Mandarin, with interviews in English and Cantonese. The first segment was presented on June 25, and the second segment was presented on July 9. You can watch the first two segments below.

KTSF's first segment of special program on Directing Change film contest

Second segment of KTSF's special program about Directing Change.

We are showcasing the winning videos from Through the Lens of Culture - Suicide Prevention and Through the Lens of Culture - Mental Health Matters categories, as well as winners of other categories from Bay Area high schools below. Winning videos from 2016 can be found on the 2016 Directing Change Winners page.

2017 Through the Lens of Culture Winners – Suicide Prevention

First Place: “Escuchen”
Orange County

San Juan Hills High School
Filmmakers: Vanessa Miranda & Anna Dieckmeyer
Advisor Name: Brian Devaney

Second Place: “Reading the Signs” 
Sonoma County
El Molino High School
Filmmakers: Jesse Osman
Advisor Name: Seth Friesen

Third Place: “Bag of Sadness” 
Sacramento County
Franklin High School
Filmmaker: Michelle Quan
Advisor Name: Brad Clark

Honorable Mention “The Words that Pull Me Down”
San Diego County
Torrey Pines High School
Filmmakers: Grace Bachour, Jordan Hayes, Eliee Shahidi, Halima Ander
Advisor Name: Don Collins

Honorable Mention “Lub Neej Muaj Nqe (Worthy Life)”
Fresno County
Kings View Youth Empowerment
Filmmakers: Peter Xiong, Pao Vue, Curtis Vang, Vincent Her
Advisor Name: Andy Vang

2017 Through the Lens of Culture Winners – Mental Health Matters

First Place: “Caged Bird” 

Sacramento County
Franklin High School
Filmmakers: Holly Cheng
Advisor Name: Brad Clark

Second Place: “Not Alone”
Los Angeles County
Northview High School
Filmmakers: Theo Casey, Fernando Cortes, Elias Anaya & Miguel Valadez
Advisor Name: Diane Atherton

Third Place: “Depression is Serious” 
Riverside County
NOVA Academy Early College High School
Filmmakers: Jasmine Caballero, Mariela Mulato, Guadalupe Centeno, Judith Isidoro & Sonia Roman
Advisor Name: Brandon Equils

Honorable Mention “The Language of Understanding”
Los Angeles County
University of California, Los Angeles
Filmmakers: Peter Guan & Kevin Ruan
Advisor: Saeromi Kim

Honorable Mention “A Friend in Need”
Placer County
Whitney High School
Filmmakers: Chenhao Liu & Jackson Cable
Advisor: Benjamin Barnholdt

Honorable Mention “Light at the end of the Tunnel”
Los Angeles County
Northview High School
Filmmakers: Jovani Gonzalez, Angel Lopez, Vincent Negrete & Joshua Gomez
Advisor:  Diane Atherton

2017 Regional First Place Winner in Mental Health Matters from Bay Area

First Place: "Make a Ripple"

Alameda County

Irvington High School
Filmmakers: Kevin Trieu, Jessica Lee, Shreya Barma & Vishaank Ghai
Advisor Name: Shiloh Burton

2017 Regional First Place Winner in Suicide Prevention from Bay Area

First Place: "Years Unfold"

Alameda County
Foothill High School
Filmmakers: Cassie Wang, Daniel Do, Shelley Ho, Sami Nasser, Sabrina Chen
Advisor Name: Scott Sears