The Young Vote

The Young Vote will be a feature-length documentary (with a shorter 10-minute version for use in schools) produced by Yard Girl Productions. It will examine the current political system in the United States and how it prevents many young people from participating, especially students of color in low-income communities in the United States. In 2016, only 50% of the eligible voters between the ages of 18-29 voted in the presidential election, while only 31% of eligible voters who were 29 and under cast a ballot in the midterms in 2018. The current discourse around the young vote often refers to young people as being “lazy” or “not caring” about the importance of voting, and this film will challenge this belief and present a much more complicated reality. The Young Vote will follow the stories of three to five young people from diverse communities in the US, some of whom voted in recent elections and others who did not. It will provide insight into what holds more young people back from fully participating in the political process in the US. The film will also examine the rise in youth activism in the US around social issues like gun control, global warming, inequality, and criminal justice and how this rise in activism impacts the political participation of youth. It will also highlight the obstacles in the political system that prevent young people from engaging in a process that is in many ways stacked against them—such as voting age limitations, voter suppression, and money in politics. The film will conclude by showcasing the various movements that exist to engage more young people in participating in the political system in the US and also bring attention to the effort by the National Popular Vote Interstate Compact—to get states to ensure electoral votes go to the candidates who win the popular vote.