TROY, NY (12/27/2012) – On Saturday, December 15^th, cameras started rolling on a documentary which aims to capture the power of change witnessed every day in CEO’s YouthBuild program. The Sanctuary for Independent Media in Troy, which is producing the documentary, was recently awarded funds from the National Endowment of the Arts (NEA) and the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA) to help pay for this project, which is part of the Youth Media Sanctuary’s “Be the Media” series.

Two cameramen filmed over the course of four hours at CEO’s Youth Opportunity Center (YOC) in Lansingburgh. Program participants were interviewed and the cameramen filmed the youth hard at work in the YOC workshop. The goal of the film is to educate the public about the YouthBuild program and capture the inspiring stories surrounding the participants, with the hope that residents and community members will recognize the value of the program offer their support.

Completion of the documentary is expected before the end of January and will be available for streaming on The Sanctuary for Independent Media’s website. CEO’s YouthBuild team plans to submit the documentary to YouthBuild USA for their “YouthBuild’s Got Talent” contest.

The YouthBuild program, which serves youth facing barriers aged 16-24, offers its participants a second chance at life by teaching important career and life skills while they also work toward obtaining their GEDs. YouthBuild participants are also professionally trained in construction, and they give back to their community by building affordable housing for local families in need.

The Sanctuary’s “Be the Media” workshop series provides local artists, producers, and citizen journalists with opportunities to acquire and improve the skills necessary for successful and powerful independent media-making. Youth Media Sanctuary (YMS) is a community media arts peer-training project, designed to teach multimedia skills to young people in North Troy, NY, and to help develop urgently needed independent local voices in our economically devastated neighborhood.