We debuted the youth films created during the Be Kind Rewind Filmmaking Summer Camp at the 10th Annual Moondance Film Festival, where over 100 attendees responded with enthusiastic applause, providing students with undeniable validation of their creative talents. This success has expanded beyond our community, as A Place Called Home partnered with the Golden Globe Foundation, Film Independent, and Women’s Voices Now to screen youth films from outside of our organization.
Many of the students have continued their education in our digital media programming and are now seriously exploring careers in film production, graphic design, and animation after graduation. Over the past year, A Place Called Home has reached over 200 youth in our digital media program through filmmaking, animation, graphic art and design, and photography.
GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT FOR MOONDANCE YOUTH FILM FESTIVAL:
Moondance Film Festival began in 2015 as a showcase of “Sweded” films created during our Be Kind Rewind summer camp. Inspired by the 2008 film Be Kind Rewind starring Jack Black and Mos Def, the camp brings together members from across our programs for six weeks of movie-making magic. Just like in the film-where the characters remake classics with low-budget tricks and lots of heart-our members have reimagined favorites like Harry Potter, Star Wars, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, along with countless original shorts.
At its core, Be Kind Rewind is more than a camp. It’s a space where imagination and creativity lead the way, where collaboration, resilience, and problem-solving are built into the process. Most importantly, it’s where young people get to share their voices, their perspectives, and have fun being exactly who they are.
Over the years, Moondance has grown beyond celebrating those camp films. Today, it’s a platform for youth, young adults, and emerging professional filmmakers and organizations to share stories that are fresh, bold, and culturally relevant—bringing new energy and inspiration to our South LA and the APCH community for FREE.
Moondance Youth Film Festival Filmmaker Experience:
Accepted filmmakers can expect to get a reserved parking space at our campus in South Central, where they will have the opportunity to mingle with other accepted filmmakers in a green room, crafty provided (cotton candy included!). The screening takes place in our Bridge Theater, where filmmakers will be introduced before their film plays. After all non-APCH films play, we host an audience Q&A moderated by the festival director, Jahcobie Cosom. Audience members are encouraged to participate with prizes, like film merch courtesy of partnering film/media organizations. After the screening, filmmakers can make use of our step-and-repeat and continue to mingle with filmmakers and audience members in the lobby. Moondance Film Festival is committed to culturally-relevant programming and filmmakers may be asked to subtitle their films in Spanish with the help of the hosting organization APCH.
About the 2026 Moondance Youth Film Festival (South LA):
We are gearing up for the 11th annual Moondance Film Festival which will take place on October 2nd, 2026. Stay tuned for more information on how to submit film work. If you are interested in festival partnerships, information or would like to connect please contact Jahcobie Cosom, Digital Media Program Specialist at [email protected]