Rounding out the Youth in Mental Health Shorts Block, Nuestro Apoyo is a short film that is fairly straightforward in terms of its filmmaking craft, but stands out for its performances and the importance of its topic. Crafted by Latina filmmaker Maya Velazquez, the film is about a Latina teenager who is struggling with her mental health and wants to seek help. However, due to a deeply entrenched cultural stigma in Latine communities, her parents are firmly opposed to the idea.
Nuestro Apoyo tackles topics that are similar to another short in the youth mental health block, Saisha: that of how intergenerational stigma in families is passed on until the cycle is eventually broken, and how teenagers lack agency over their own mental health. Without the help of their parents, teens cannot access many resources for their own mental health, which leaves them at the mercy of their parents’ decisions. In Nuestro Apoyo, thankfully, the cycle of stigma seems to be weakening one particular family’s aversion to therapy, but it’s important to recognize that the vital message of this film lies in showing how strong that cycle still persists—until someone decides to break it. And yes, Nuestro Apoyo had a conventional narrative and ended on a perhaps too optimistic note, but I still found it incredibly effective in conveying its message, and it still made me cry. Using a formula that isn’t broken to tell an emotionally impactful and overlooked story still works.
You can still watch Nuestro Apoyo in Shorts Block No. 4 (the Youth in Mental Health Shorts Block) for FREE through 11/2: Nuestro Apoyo | Shorts Block No. 4 – Youth In Mental Health | Mental Filmness 2025 Virtual Festival
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