Young people are flexing their creative minds at such a young age, and it’s admirable to say the least.

California resident Kalia Love Jones, 13, is a hardworking creative that wears many hats. Between her schoolwork, she trains as a gymnast, plays the piano, the flute in honor band, and in her spare time makes films aimed at women empowerment, according to The Santa Clarita Valley Signal.

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Her maiden animation film, “Power of Hope,” is an aspirational short film that strives to remind young adults — women in particular — that they can pursue their big dreams regardless of pre-existing or present circumstances.

“It’s about a girl who is trying to become an architect, but as she’s trying to reach her goal, a bunch of obstacles are getting in her way, so she tries to overcome those obstacles to reach her goal,” Jones said to The Santa Clarita Valley Signal. “I wanted to show the film through animation because it felt like the best way to engage people my age, but I also really love animation.”

Jones’ film pursuit wasn’t without its challenges. She encountered a lot of “nos” from people who were apprehensive about working with a 13-year-old, but just like her film, she proved she could defy the odds.

“It didn’t seem like a lot of people wanted to work with [me], so finding people took a really long time,” Jones said. “We had to email people and go out to colleges.”

Those obstacles didn’t stop Jones from making her ideas come to life as she worked odd jobs, recycled for family and friends, and even saved her earnings to help produce her film, Face 2 Face Africa reports.

In turn, she received about a dozen email responses from willing participants, according to Face 2 Face Africa, and so she proceeded with her film thanks to her newly-assembled crew.

“I started with the idea, writing the story and creating the characters,” Jones told The Santa Clarita Valley Signal.

She also revealed some of her favorite women leaders served as inspiration for the film’s storyline including Rebecca Sugar, Ava DuVernay, Oprah, and even Michelle Obama, who directly inspires the main character.

As the film’s director, Jones oversaw the creative aspects of production. She also made sure to visualize her script well enough to direct the animator and bring her vision to life, Face 2 Face Africa shares.

She even co-wrote the film’s theme song with Grammy-nominated producer, Ben Franklin.

According to The Santa Clarita Valley Signal, the film is set to debut at Urban World 2020 this weekend and the 2020 LA Shorts International Film Festival next month.

Kalia says she has hopes to leave a positive mark on the world through her film and inspire other young Black girls to chase their dreams too.

For more information on the film, visit @thepowerofhopefilm on Instagram.

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