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Charlotte Black Girls Film Camp to offer opportunities for teen girls to display their creative side
By Elvis Menayese
June 24, 2026 at 2:22 PM EDT
A film festival coming to Charlotte this week provides opportunities for high school girls to display their creative sides.
This year’s Black Girls Film Camp festival, held June 25-28, spotlights films by 10 teen filmmakers that focus on mental health and body ownership. The goal of the festival is “to close the gap in representation in media and also to bridge opportunities for young girls to be able to engage in literacy and storytelling,” said its founder, Dr. Jimmeka Anderson.
Anderson started the festival in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. She says part of the camp's goal is to remove challenges and provide access for families.
“What if the playing field was even?” she said. That has always driven my passion.
“How do we level out the playing field for those who may have parents who can't afford to put them in those programs, or may not even have the knowledge of how to access those programs for their youth?”
One of the films is called “Safe Space.” It centers on a negative experience an 18-year-old has with a health care provider. Anderson said several of the girls decided to produce films on mental health for a reason.
“They're feeling more confident about having these conversations about mental health,” Anderson said. “This space is kind of giving them the opportunity to unpack it in a creative way.”
The screening of the films takes place on Saturday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.
This year’s Black Girls Film Camp festival, held June 25-28, spotlights films by 10 teen filmmakers that focus on mental health and body ownership. The goal of the festival is “to close the gap in representation in media and also to bridge opportunities for young girls to be able to engage in literacy and storytelling,” said its founder, Dr. Jimmeka Anderson.
Anderson started the festival in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. She says part of the camp's goal is to remove challenges and provide access for families.
“What if the playing field was even?” she said. That has always driven my passion.
“How do we level out the playing field for those who may have parents who can't afford to put them in those programs, or may not even have the knowledge of how to access those programs for their youth?”
One of the films is called “Safe Space.” It centers on a negative experience an 18-year-old has with a health care provider. Anderson said several of the girls decided to produce films on mental health for a reason.
“They're feeling more confident about having these conversations about mental health,” Anderson said. “This space is kind of giving them the opportunity to unpack it in a creative way.”
The screening of the films takes place on Saturday at the NASCAR Hall of Fame.