UpWord at 826LA

Access to tech and creative industry employment

Central LA East LA South LA West LA

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

Los Angeles is home to the creative industry here in the United States. From movie and streaming studios to music production facilities, production shops, entertainment lawyers, podcast studios, and more, the city is a hub of activity for creative professionals. However, representation is lacking throughout the industry. According to the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, only 5.5% of speaking characters on the big screen come from Latine performers, despite the United States’ Latine population being 23% and LA’s being 47%. Further, across the 100 top-grossing films of 2016, 47 did not feature a single Black woman or girl speaking on screen, 66 movies were devoid of Asian female characters, and a full 72 films erased Latinas. Behind the scenes, only 15.7% of films were directed by an individual from an underrepresented group from 2007-2023. 826LA wants to help our students gain early experience with tech and creative roles as they begin to explore career possibilities.

826LA’s UpWord will introduce students to various aspects of creative industry employment, create potential mentor/mentee relationships, and ultimately become published authors with a recorded podcast of their written work as well as a 3D model of a character or object from their story. This wraparound approach to creative writing will take students from the outline/first draft through “promotions” with the podcast to a tangible object, thus representing multiple aspects of creative industry work here in Los Angeles.
As the signature piece of this project, 826LA proposes launching a student-run online literary journal where young writers take the lead as editors, curators, and creative decision-makers. Students will learn the full publishing process—from reviewing slush pile submissions and writing editorial feedback to selecting themes and sequencing content for each issue. The journal will publish poetry, fiction, nonfiction, and hybrid work by youth, with an emphasis on underrepresented voices. Through hands-on experience, students will develop critical reading, collaboration, and project management skills essential to the publishing industry.
Modeled after our successful student creative writing and mentorship program at Helen Bernstein H.S. in Hollywood in which students work with professionals from nearby Paramount Studios, this project will expose students to real life creative jobs and help instill confidence in students’ access to future employment in the industry.

UpWord will give young Angelenos the opportunity to learn about, and participate in, the creative economy. As the industry continues to change, there is opportunity for original stories from young people whose lived experiences include unprecedented cultural divides, a global pandemic, a centuries-in-the-making racial reckoning, a new administration, and economic shifts which have changed the way most of us live. By helping students unlock their creative potential, Los Angeles (and beyond) can benefit from experiencing unique works which reflect significant parts of the population which have been historically underrepresented. Eighty-nine percent of 826LA’s students are BIPOC, and 72% come from households with low income. With the growth of UpWord, 826LA will be able to further scale similar projects, continually adding Los Angeles area schools and allowing their students the opportunity to nurture their creative ambitions.