This past week I had the privilege of viewing the world premiere of a new film, Youth Producing Change, at the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival in New York. As a visual compilation of life stories from young people all over the world, Youth Producing Change (YPD) captured the everyday struggles and triumphs young people deal with. Teen homelessness, HIV/AIDS, preserving an Islamic identity in a western culture, racial profiling, child labor and sexual assault were only a few of the topics these films exposed.

I first have to say that the stories in themselves were truly incredible. Each of the tales, some of which were done in documentary form while others were animations created by young people, told the story of a struggle, a triumph and a dream.

Struggles appeared in so many forms. Young people feeling forced to choose between homelessness and prostitution.  Adolescents being constantly subject to police brutality because of the color of their skin. A 13 year old working every day in a gravestone factory in Armenia to help support his family, instead of going to school.

Triumph was shown as homeless young people got themselves off the streets, into shelters, jobs and eventually their own homes. It was shown as a young man rising to the challenge of parenting his siblings after he lost his parents to AIDS. It was shown as a young woman choosing to be proud of her Islamic identity, even in the face of ridicule and hate she experienced every day in school.

The dream in each film was the same: a world free of discrimination and social inequity, defined by youth empowerment.

When I asked the young filmmakers, all of whom are under 19 years old, why they chose film as their medium and why they think it is important to use film as a tool for social change, their responses were passionate and inspired. They told me that film is an effective way to spread a message. Visualizing a person’s background helps you (the viewer) relate to their struggle. “Films show people the truth,” they said, “that is the best way to make a difference.”

While the stories were both fascinating and heart wrenching, what inspired me the most was to see these empowered young people taking action for what they believed needed to change. This compilation of films was a spark to open the eyes of viewers around the world about the injustices that young people face. As filmmakers themselves explained, these films were created to give “voices to the voiceless” and “bring change.”

The mere existence of this film sends a powerful message to the world: Young people CAN affect change. As spoken from one youth activist to a thousand other, “Some think you people don’t have the ability to make change. The future is in our hands, let’s go make a difference.”