16-Year-Old Filmmaker & Actress Meredith Grace Dabney Releases Award-Winning Short “HERE TODAY”

Filmmaker and actress Meredith Grace Dabney releases her award-winning short film HERE TODAY which chronicles the life of a high school girl struggling to find her identity with a new group of friends. The film comes directly from the filmmaker’s production company Astrabeta Creations in association with Arvold Productions and Point Nine Films.

This universally autobiographical tale, written by the young filmmaker, is a reminder of vulnerability, life’s connections and, most importantly, that words and actions, however small, affect everyone and everything.

View the short here:

HERE TODAY | Award-Winning Short Film

HERE TODAY, directed by Erica Arvold and written by Meredith, serves as a reminder that wherever you may be on your journey in life, YOU are valid and important. Meredith uses her voice as a platform for herself and others who may be in a dark place. In conjunction with the film, Meredith has initiated a social media campaign “You Okay? Ask Someone Today!”

The campaign is a way to challenge others to reach out to three individuals every day via text, mail, email, phone or other forms of communication to simply ask: “You Okay?” (one person may be ourselves). The campaign, which was initiated as part of Mental Health Awareness Month, will be going on through summer and is also reflected in some very cool merchandise with the same “You Okay?” message.

Dabney says, “I want to change the world through kindness and connectedness and this way, people can have a reminder to reach out to others by wearing it for all to see.”

Meredith Grace Dabney is a 16-year-old actor, writer, and filmmaker on a mission to “tell stories that need to be told.” An actor equally in love with stage and screen, she is best known for energetic performances and depth of character portrayals. A young actor with a large body of work, Meredith has participated in an array of theatre productions, films, pilots, and new media projects.

Committed to always exploring ways to make her acting more truthful, she trains regularly at Catapult Acting Studios, Young Actors Workshop (CA), and Anthony Meindl’s Actor Workshop (AMAW). Meredith originally wrote the film HERE TODAY when she was 14.

Meredith is committed to making a difference in the lives of others and she has taken part in advocacy campaigns including Teens For Jeans, New State of Mind, and Tie A Ribbon. For the future, Meredith is working to start her own non-profit to support both her creative and societal missions. She also has a number of original projects currently in development including a few shorts, a feature, an anthology, and a series.

Cast: Meredith Grace Dabney, CeCe Kelly, Isaiah Asher Hanley, Kjay Saifullah
Prod Co: Astrabeta Creations, Arvold Productions, Point Nine
Film’s Producers: Erica Arvold, Isaac Dietz, Erik Lingvall, Taylor Fedele, Viviana Chavez

For more info:

IG: @heretodaymovie & @meredith.grace.dabney

FB: @MeredithGraceDabney & @HereTodayMovie

TW: @heretodaymovie