Overview:
The Gen-Z Film Festival, held on March 15 at the Buell Media Center, marks the next phase of Rocy Mountain PBS' Above the Noise campaign.
“Pedicures are for Boys” is a short film created by Kareem Hooper, a Gen-Zer who’s looking to make an impact through his work within documentary filmmaking.
“My film explores the idea of being able to speak out more as a man with mental health issues in today’s society and just being able to have a voice for whatever problems that you have,” Hooper said. “As a man, any color, any kind of person you are, just being able to embrace who you are proudly.”
By teaming up with young creatives like Hooper, Rocky Mountain PBS (RMPBS) is aiming to bridge that disconnect through unconventional means: film. The Gen-Z Film Festival, held at the Buell Media Center on March 15, is set to kick off RMPBS’ next step of its Above the Noise campaign.
Above the Noise started in the summer of 2024, prior to the presidential election, with a goal of building a strong Colorado news ecosystem by cutting through the negativity in the news industry. The campaign started with the creation of the film “Undivide Us,” which focused on showing Americans that they’re more similar than they may think, despite their political differences.
Now with election season over and a year’s experience under their belt, the campaign is shifting gears to a completely different goal: bridging the gap between traditional news outlets and the younger demographic.
“For Rocky Mountain Public Media and newsrooms across Colorado, [Gen-Z] feels like a demographic that we aren’t connecting with,” said Amber Coté, senior director of community relations with RMPBS.
After talking to several college-aged Gen-Zers, it became clear to Coté and the team at Above the Noise that legacy media isn’t reaching younger audiences as effectively as it once did.
“[Gen-Z] are certainly savvy, but we found that they’re getting their news from different social media, different podcasts and blogs,” Coté said.
Better connecting with Gen-Zers isn’t easy, but Coté and the Above the Noise team are up for the challenge. They recognize that getting younger people to come to more traditional legacy news could be a tough task, so they’re pivoting to meet them on their level through means like social media and film.
“[Gen-Z] are the folks that are making big decisions and are the next generation of impact,” Coté said. “The next-gen of impact is just so important to us, so we want to meet them where they are instead of making them come to where we are.”
For Coté, the first step of meeting the younger demographic where they are was partnering with the Youth Documentary Academy (YDA) for a Gen-Z-specific film festival. YDA is a Colorado Springs-based group that, according to its website, “prepares a new generation of underrepresented storytellers and helps them locate and amplify their voices through the art of documentary film.”
Partnering with YDA has presented the Above the Noise team with the opportunity to work with like-minded individuals like Mari Moxley, who’s a social worker and a senior advisor at YDA.
“What we are hoping is that these films help model empathic conversations to get dialogue going between Gen-Zers,” Moxley said. “We also are hoping that newsrooms get to listen in on the topics that Gen-Zers feel like are most important.”
Moxley believes that providing Gen-Zer filmmakers an opportunity to share their stories is a unique opportunity for newsrooms and people of the older demographic to bridge the divide between generations.
“Gen-Zers have an appetite to grapple with social justice and mental health issues,” Moxley said. “They have this wonderful candor that is just so much more open than previous generations. With the stories that Gen-Z is willing to share in community spaces, I think that there’s healing in it for all generations.”
Having hard-hitting discussions can be difficult, but Coté and Moxley are hoping that impactful films like Hooper’s can act as a catalyst for impactful conversations to help others connect despite their differences.
“I think right now, we need connection more than ever,” Moxley said. “I think shared reality and mutual empathy are really important. I think it’s great that we can provide a container that’s fun and warm to have hard conversations that’s modeled around the candor and courage of these filmmakers.”
The Gen-Z Film Festival is only the first step in Above the Noise’s plans to reach out and connect with the younger demographic, but they’re taking it one step at a time.
“Our intention is to launch with this [film festival] at our own space in Denver and then we’ll do like we did last year and just go to different places around the state,” Coté said. “[Our ultimate goal] is just to connect with young adults better, build relations and build trust.”
Moxley is just as eager as Coté to use film as a way to create common ground and make an impactful connection that transcends generations.
“I’m really awed by the courage and the bravery and just the synthesis that’s even happening in partnering with this project,” Moxley said. “March 15 is our very first launch of the Gen-Z aspect of Above the Noise, so we’re really just getting started.”
Hooper, who has been involved with YDA for around three years, is thrilled to be provided with the unique opportunity for his film to help bridge the generational gap at the Gen-Z Film Festival.
“It’s amazing,” Hooper said. “I wanted to be doing this with my life when I was smaller. If I wanted to be a hero when I was smaller, this is what I would see as a hero. I just feel like that this is a huge thing and just to be a part of it is a great honor.”
