Hey, there! Do you know how commercial tobacco impacts your community?
Think about it.
Every couple miles down the road you might see a tobacco/vape shop. Some of these shops and other tobacco retailers are close to schools and located in lower income areas. Have you ever wondered why? Have you ever noticed all the different promotional ads and flavors of cigars, vapes, and oral pouches? Why do you think these products are so cheap, visible, and loaded with flavors, and who is the tobacco industry targeting? How does tobacco use impact our families and the environment? Lots of questions, and you can find the answers in our
Tobacco Impact Fact Sheets. The reality is tobacco products affect our mental and physical health. Many people think the nicotine buzz provides stress relief, but it actually makes stress and anxiety levels worse. Tobacco products also physically affect the mouth, stomach, lungs, and so many other organs! There are a lot of chemicals in them - including 7,000 in cigarettes and cigars!
Tobacco affects everyone.
Did you know
90% of people who use tobacco products start before the age of 18? The tobacco industry wants to hook people to their products at a young age so they can become addicted, lifelong customers. The tobacco industry targets youth through saturated marketing on social media, in-store promotions, flavored tobacco products, midleading health claims, celebrity endorsements, cheaper tobacco prices/discounts, and many other ways. Tobacco use is the leading cause of
preventable death and disease in the United States. Enough is enough! Use
YOUR voice to amplify the importance of tobacco-free communities.
With partnership between
Mecklenburg County Public Health (MCPH),
Healthy Blue NC,
Center for Prevention Services (Alianza Coalition), and
High Resolves (Videos for Change), the
Youth Voices: Tobacco-Free Video Contest will focus on amplifying
youth voices (ages 11-20) in Region 4 counties of NC, to creatively share how tobacco impacts their community through video/photovoice. So, choose a tobacco-related topic you’re passionate about and let your voice(s) be heard by bringing awareness and advocacy for change!
*Region 4 Counties: Alexander, Cabarrus, Catawba, Cleveland, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Rowan, Stanly, and Union.
One idea. One minute. One video or photovoice submission.
And the chance to amplify your voice worldwide.
Congratulations, Youth Voices Winners!
Your hard work in raising awareness around the harmful impact of tobacco use among teens is to be commended.
Click the link below to view our virtual Film Festival Slide Deck
This slide deck provides insight on the purpose and importance of this contest. Most importantly, it celebrates the winners, their videos, and their perspectives!
Final_Youth Voices Film Festival Slides - Feb 1 2023.pptx
First Place Middle School Individual Winner:"Don't Use Tobacco" by Santiago
First Place Middle School Team Winner:"tobacco is Bad here is why" by Mateo and Gabriela
First Place High School Individual Winner:"Choose to Refuse" by Jessica
Second place High School Individual Winner + People's Choice Award:"Breaking News" by Jacob
Honorable Mention Award:"Vaping Can Ruin You" by Jawad
Prizes - Opportunity to win cool prizes (collectively valued at $1000)
Air Pods
Season Passes to Carowinds
Amazon Gift Cards
Winners will have their video/photovoice shared with other community partners on their websites & social media platforms! Winners will have the opportunity to present their creative entry with community leaders and a chance to enter their entries in a global
Videos for Change competition!
Timeline
Website is Live – Open for Registration/Entry Submission –
September 12, 2022
Webinar Live Q&A -
October 18, 2022
Entries Close –
December 16, 2022
Finalists Announced -
January 13, 2023
People's Choice Voting Opens –
January 13, 2023
People's Choice Voting Closes –
January 20, 2023
Winners Announced –
January 24, 2023
Prizes Mailed/Picked Up –
January 31, 2023
Film Festival & Celebrations –
February 1, 2023
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Contest Rules & Tips (Pstt…Important to Read)
More of These:
- Make sure your
video is
60 seconds or less
- Make sure
photovoice submissions are
5-15 photos and contain a sentence or
short paragraph (25 words maximum per photo) explaining the photo to give it a "voice.” You may NOT use photos taken from the internet. These need to be ORIGINAL photos you have taken in your community. Note: photovoice photos will be uploaded in video slideshow format.
- Videos and photovoice descriptions can be in
English or in
Spanish;
must promote anti-tobacco messaging;
active use of tobacco products within the video is
prohibited. Ideas can include, but are not limited to, peer pressure, mental health and addiction, vaping, point of sale (promotions, ads, marketing found in neighborhoods), alternative healthy behaviors, generational use, secondhand and thirdhand smoke, advocacy around tobacco-free environments, tobacco use in Hispanic/Latino households/communities, etc.
- Make sure to have
parent/guardian consent if under 18 years old.
- Check out our video clips explaining this process and the ins and outs. Link will soon be available.
- Tune into our live
Q&A session on October 18, 2022 at 4:00 pm to have any questions or concerns answered by our team!
- Check out our
Tobacco Impact Fact Sheets to provide ideas and education around tobacco!
- Be creative! Allow your voice and artsy side to shine through your creation. The video quality doesn’t have to look “fancy” or “professional.” You can make it your own by adding sound, text, call to action messaging, etc.
None of These:
-
Don’t use copyright music. Click the pdf to access copyright-free sites and tips/tricks for editing your videos.
4.10_Quick Tips Tricks and Hacks.pdf -
Don’t promote tobacco messaging or actively use tobacco products in the video.
-
Don’t exceed the number of group members in a team. Video submissions can be individual or group categories. Groups can be anywhere between 2-4 people. Photovoice is only an individual category.
-
Don’t use derogatory or offensive language within the video or photovoice submission.
*Failure to follow the above rules will lead to disqualification*
Judging Criteria
How it Works:
1. Internally we select X number of finalists in each category based on submissions that meet the criteria.
2. Once we have narrowed down the finalists in each category, we have the external judges vote and determine the winners of each category.
3. While judges are determining the winners of each category, all finalists are promoting their videos for people's choice, which is one overall winner from all finalists, resulting in one People's Choice Award from the pool of finalists.
Tobacco Impact Fact Sheets
Do you want to enter this contest, but
have no idea what tobacco-related topic you’d be interested in capturing? Or maybe you’re thinking, “hmm, I don’t know much about this topic and how it impacts my community.” Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered! Below you’ll find our
Tobacco Impact Fact Sheets! These are
brief, easy to ready fact sheets covering several different tobacco-related areas. Click each one to learn more about the topic. Your video creation is
not limited to the topics below. These are simply resources to get your creative wheels turning and provide some awareness/educational content.
