''Lost in America'' is a
documentary feature film by director
Rotimi Rainwater.
The film aims to shine a light on the issue of homeless youth in the United States.
It investigates the reasons youth become homeless, the challenges they face while on the streets and the possible ways to help them find homes and get off the street for good.
The film includes appearances by singers
Jon Bon Jovi
John Francis Bongiovi Jr. (born March 2, 1962), known professionally as Jon Bon Jovi, is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He is best known as the founder and frontman of the rock band Bon Jovi, which was formed in 1983. He ...
and
Jewel,
actors
Halle Berry
Halle Maria Berry (; born Maria Halle Berry; August 14, 1966) is an American actress. She began her career as a model and entered several beauty contests, finishing as the first runner-up in the Miss USA pageant and coming in sixth in the Mis ...
,
Rosario Dawson
Rosario Isabel Dawson (born May 9, 1979) is an American actress. She made her feature-film debut in the 1995 independent drama ''Kids''. Her subsequent film roles include '' He Got Game'' (1998), ''Josie and the Pussycats'' (2001), ''Men in Bl ...
and
Mike C. Manning
Mike C. Manning is an American actor, producer, reality television personality and activist. Manning gained fame as a cast member on the MTV series ''The Real World: D.C.'' before subsequently embarking on an acting career, appearing in a number ...
(who is also a producer on the film)
and US Senator
Patrick Leahy.
The film was shown out of competition at the
Bentonville Film Festival.
Jewel also wrote a track for the film, "No More Tears", which was subsequently included on her 2022 album ''
Freewheelin' Woman
''Freewheelin' Woman'' is the thirteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Jewel, released on April 15, 2022, via her own label, Words Matter Media. It is Jewel's first album in seven years, following 2015's '' Picking Up the Pieces''. ...
'' as a duet with
Darius Rucker.
''Lost in America'' is a continuation of Rotimi Rainwater's journey of shining the light on youth homelessness after directing the feature film ''
Sugar
Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose, fructose, and galactose. Compound sugars, also called disaccharides or double ...
''.
Synopsis
''Lost in America'' follows the journey of formerly homeless director, Rotimi Rainwater,
as he tries to accept and come to terms with his experience of being a homeless youth. He and his film crew travel the country interviewing homeless youth, organizations aimed to help them, and politicians to gain a better understanding of the issue of youth homelessness.
The film looks at the challenges faced by homeless youth such as
sex trafficking
Sex trafficking is human trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation. It has been called a form of modern slavery because of the way victims are forced into sexual acts non-consensually, in a form of sexual slavery. Perpetrators of the ...
, the failure of the
foster care system
Foster care is a system in which a underage, minor has been placed into a ward (law), ward, group home (Residential Child Care Community, residential child care community, Treatment centre, treatment center, etc.), or private home of a state-ce ...
and the lack of acceptance of
LGBTQ kids.
Production
''Lost in America'' began production in 2013.
Funding for the film was raised via crowdfunding site
Indiegogo.
References
External links
*
*
Documentary films about homelessness in the United States
2018 films
2010s English-language films
{{2010s-documentary-film-stub