In 2018, This Is My Brave partnered with award-winning documentary filmmaker Beth Murphy to create the mini-documentary: This Is My Brave – shining a light on mental illness to end stigma.
In 2019 we began work on our next project – a feature-length documentary film following the development and growth of our new High School Edition program.
Teens today are at the center of a mental health epidemic in America. Anxiety, trauma, depression, eating disorders and addiction are responsible for the highest rates of suicide ever recorded among young people.
BRAVE TEENS is a documentary film about one woman’s mission to end the stigma surrounding mental illness, starting with the next generation. In this character-driven vérité film, we follow Jennifer Marshall (aka “Bipolar Mom”) as she invites teens across America to speak up about their mental illness…
without fear, without shame and free of the stigma that once silenced her.
We go behind the scenes of a high school stage production unlike any other: a show produced by Jenn that welcomes teens from all walks of life to stand up on stage and bravely share their mental health stories. In this age of social media, we meet teens who are ready to offer raw, unfiltered accounts of what it’s really like to walk in their shoes. When the cameras turn off, cell phone cameras click on to capture our characters’ innermost thoughts through revealing video diaries.
These teen stories are interwoven with Jenn’s mental illness journey – one that began when she was diagnosed with Type 1 Bipolar disorder at the age of 26. After the diagnosis, Jenn’s parents encouraged her not to go public.
Instead, she bravely shared her story in a blog post and watched as it inspired others to do the same. The organization she started, This Is My Brave, gives people living with mental illness a platform to share their stories before a live audience. While Jenn has been producing live storytelling performances nationally for the past six years, BRAVE TEENS captures the powerful making of – and behind-the-scenes of – a unique high school show.
Young people are taking their own lives at unprecedented rates, with suicide now considered the second leading cause of death for people aged 10 to 34. As a result, the mental health crisis among America’s youth can no longer be ignored. We follow Jennifer Marshall as she turns the spotlight on teens living with mental illness – with hope that storytelling can save lives.
