This annual film series focuses on issues related to teen wellness in the areas of health, mental health, sexual health, and substance use and abuse in order to create a community forum for education, communication, understanding, and awareness. Each screening includes an in-depth discussion with filmmakers, film subjects, and/or subject area experts.
A portion of the proceeds for this program goes to support Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) Wellness Centers.
2023-2024 SEASON PROGRAM
TRUST ME
SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER
SCREENING + DISCUSSION
TUESDAY, APRIL 30 • 7:00
Trust Me examines both the psychological effects and the emotional and social ramifications of misinformation on society, on democracy, and on our mental health—particularly for younger generations who’ve known no other reality.
With testimonies from a wide range of media and psychology experts alongside everyday media consumers of all ages, Oscar®-nominated documentarian Roko Belic outlines the inherent dangers in spreading false information as well as some tangible solutions. Stressing the critical need for media literacy and journalistic integrity, Trust Me makes the decisive case for each and every one of us to become more informed media consumers.
Director Roko Belic (US 2020) 60 min
PANELISTS:
LARISSA MAY • Founder of #HalfTheStory
RAGHU APPASANI • Integrative & Addiction Psychiatrist
MICHELLE “MICK” DOWLING • Board Member My Digital Tat2 and former Trust and Safety Global Response Lead for YouTube.
RAGHU APPASANI • Integrative & Addiction Psychiatrist
MICHELLE “MICK” DOWLING • Board Member My Digital Tat2 and former Trust and Safety Global Response Lead for YouTube.
I AM MARIS: PORTRAIT OF A YOUNG YOGI
SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER
SCREENING + DISCUSSION
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 14 • 7:00
Finding herself instantly drawn to the healing power of yoga, teenage Maris finds ways to combat the once-crippling mental health issues that defined her adolescence as she begins her studies to become a yoga instructor at only 16 years old. After a childhood of mounting anxiety, depression, and eating disorders, Maris’ parents check her into a hospital to help her confront her illness. Still struggling to cope after being released, Maris begins exploring various methods of therapy, beginning with art and poetry before discovering the life-changing effects that yoga has on both her body and mind. Through her teaching and her blog, Maris strives to inspire others by speaking openly about her struggles and promoting self-acceptance.
Director Laura VanZee Taylor (US 2018) 55 min
The screening will be followed by an in-depth panel discussion featuring:
Dr. Ariel Trost, Clinical Psychologist
Stacey Capobianco, Wellness + Yoga Educator
Laura VanZee Taylor, Director, I Am Maris
Alayna Woodruff, Redwood High School student
2022-2023 SEASON PROGRAM
SCREENAGERS: UNDER THE INFLUENCE
AT THE SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER
SCREENING + DISCUSSION
TUESDAY, APRIL 25 • 7:00
This third feature documentary in the Screenagers trilogy delves into how the tech revolution has reshaped adolescence and teen substance use. Debunking many myths, the film illustrates strategies parents and schools can use to encourage healthy decision-making, support teen mental health, set limits, and create healthy home environments; and highlights the many ways young people are using their wisdom and strength to help each other and themselves through this complicated terrain. While most documentaries about substance use focus on severe addiction, Screenagers Under the Influence explores more common scenarios, addressing the current reality teens face being flooded by images on social media, movies, and TV about vaping, drugs, and alcohol. Combining cutting-edge science with personal stories, Screenagers emphasizes practical solutions for keeping our teens safe in an ever-changing world. Directors Lisa Tabb & Delaney Ruston (US 2023) 68 min
The screening will be followed by an in-depth panel discussion featuring:
- Rene Ayala, coach/teacher, Archie Williams High School
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Rhana Hashemi, Founder, Know Drugs; PhD student, Stanford
-
Loretta Hovey, student, Archie Williams High School
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Kristin Nash, Executive Director, William G. Nash Foundation
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Lisa Tabb, Director/Producer, Screenagers Under the Influence
A portion of the proceeds for this program goes to support Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) Wellness Centers.
Click image to view trailer
ANXIOUS NATION
AT THE SMITH RAFAEL FILM CENTER
SCREENING + DISCUSSION
WEDNESDAY, NOV. 16 • 6:30
Over the past three decades, the biggest public health threats to teenagers in the U.S. came from binge drinking, drunken driving, teenage pregnancy, and smoking. Today, they have been replaced by soaring rates of mental health disorders—especially anxiety. Anxious Nation takes a deep look into the crisis of anxiety and mental health in America, especially its impact on kids (ages 10-26) and families. The film zeros in on the nurture/nature debate, what’s happening in homes and society that’s adding to the problem, the crisis on college campuses, and the impact in lower socioeconomic communities, especially brown and black communities. Resolving anxiety is not a one-size-fits-all answer, but co-directors Roth and Morton leave you with an understanding that you’re not alone in the struggle. Offering deep insights on how we got here and what we can do to harness anxious energy for good, Anxious Nation offers hope. While there’s no cure for anxiety, we can learn to manage it so it doesn’t define us. Directors Vanessa Roth & Laura Morton (US 2022) 100 min
The screening will be followed by an in-depth panel discussion featuring:
Dr. Tracy Foose, MD, Anxiety Specialist; Associate Professor, UCSF School of Medicine
Jen Kenny-Baum, LCSW, PPSC; TUHSD Wellness Coordinator and Internship Supervisor
Laura Morton, co-director, Anxious Nation
Vanessa Roth, co-director, Anxious Nation
High School Student to be announced
A portion of the proceeds for this program goes to support Tamalpais Union High School District (TUHSD) Wellness Centers.
2021-2022 SEASON PROGRAM
Click image to view trailer
MISSION JOY: FINDING HAPPINESS IN TROUBLED TIMES
AT THE RAFAEL
SCREENING + DISCUSSION
TUESDAY, MARCH 15 • 7:00
STREAMING RAFAEL@HOME
FILM + PRE-RECORDED DISCUSSION
AVAILABLE MARCH 16-20
Academy Award®-winning director Louie Psihoyos teams up with co-director Peggy Callahan on MISSION: JOY – FINDING HAPPINESS IN TROUBLED TIMES, a documentary with unprecedented access to the unlikely friendship of two international icons who transcend religion: His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Tutu. In their final joint mission, these self-described mischievous brothers give a master class in how to create joy in a world that was never easy for them. They offer neuroscience-backed wisdom to help each of us live with more joy, despite circumstances.
Inspired by New York Times bestseller The Book of Joy: Lasting Happiness in a Changing World, the film showcases the exchange between these two Nobel Peace Prize winners that led to that book. Consisting largely of never-before-seen footage shot over five days at the Dalai Lama’s residence in Dharamsala, the film invites viewers to join these luminaries behind the scenes as they recount stories from their lives, each having lived through periods of incredible difficulty and strife. With genuine affection, mutual respect and a healthy dose of teasing, these unlikely friends impart lessons gleaned from lived experience, ancient traditions, and the latest cutting-edge science regarding how to live with joy in the face of all of life’s challenges from the extraordinary to the mundane. MISSION: JOY is an antidote for the times. Directors Louis Psihoyos, Peggy Callahan (US 2021) 90 min
The screening will be followed by an in-depth panel discussion featuring:
JASON GANT, Behavioral Health Coach
EMILIANA SIMON-THOMAS, Ph.D, Science Director, The Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley
JOLENE SMITH, Impact Producer, Mission: JOY
TAWNY STROTZ, Redwood High School student
The panel discussion will be recorded and available for viewing as part of the streaming program.
CHASING CHILDHOOD
ONGOING ONLINE on Rafael@Home
Chasing Childhood explores how free play and independence have all but disappeared from kids’ lives— while stress, anxiety, and depression have skyrocketed. This timely documentary takes us to three communities that are trying to shift the culture to create room for play and independence with the hope of raising kids to become competent, healthy, and happy adults. Some potential solutions are also offered by the leaders of this movement including former Stanford Dean and author of How to Raise an Adult, Julie Lythcott-Haims and biological psychologist Peter Gray, who help us examine how we got to this place and how we might empower our kids going forward. Directors Margaret Munzer Loeb & Eden Wurmfeld (US 2021) 90 min
The screening will be followed by an in-depth, pre-recorded panel discussion with special guests:
- Vicki Abeles – Impact Producer, Chasing Childhood; Director, Beyond Measure, Race to Nowhere
- Madeline Levine, PhD – Psychologist; Co-founder, Challenge Success; author, Ready or Not: Preparing Our Kids to Thrive in an Uncertain and Rapidly Changing World, The Price of Privilege: How Parental Pressure and Material Advantage Are Creating a Generation of Disconnected and Unhappy Kids, Teach Your Children Well: Parenting for Authentic Success
- Margot Johnson – Student, Redwood High School
- Eric Saibel – Director of Student Services, Ross Valley School District; Co-founder, Global School Play Day
- Moderator – Joanne Parsont, CAFILM Director of Education
Click image to view trailer
CAFILM Education is building the next generation of filmmakers and film lovers through its creative film programs for Bay Area students, serving more than 15,000 young people per year as well as hundreds of educators, adults, and families. Featuring a rich program of screenings, events, seminars, and hands-on workshops, CAFILM Education introduces students to the power of film, promotes global awareness, fosters media literacy, develops critical thinking skills and lays the foundation for a lifelong appreciation of cinema.
TUHSD Wellness Centers offer specialized support for teens at their high schools including health, mental health, substance use/abuse and sexual health services and education. TUHSD Wellness offers both direct services (1:1 + group services) as well as school wide prevention and educational programs for students. TUHSD Wellness partners with a wide array of local community organizations to provide expertise and support to our teens. Learn more at the TUHSD Wellness website
TEEN WELLNESS IS MADE POSSIBLE THROUGH THE GENEROUS SUPPORT FROM
NANCY P. AND RICHARD K. ROBBINS FAMILY FOUNDATION
