Stories of perseverance and determination to be screened at NASW annual conference in Chicago
By Faye Beard
Within seconds, a tragic accident would forever change the trajectory of a young girl’s life and have a devastating impact on her family. This plotline describes the 10-minute film Phoenix by Erika Jane Jacobson, MSW, who recently won the 2025 NASW Foundation’s Documentary Film Short Contest.
In another story, a soldier returned home and remembered the social worker who helped him during a tumultuous period in high school. The heroine, Byanca Beasley, MSW, borrowed her project title from this year’s competition theme, “Compassion + Action.” Her one-minute clip took the top prize in the Short Video Reel category.
Both films will be shown this year, June 15–19, at the NASW Conference in Chicago, where the theme is “Celebrating our Legacy, Developing the Future.”
Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker Lynn Matthews, retired MSW, LCSW, served as a competition judge. She not only looked for technical skills but also looked through the lens of a social worker. “I’m looking at the social value of the film. What is it trying to get across? Who is the audience? What information is it imparting on the topic? What will the viewer walk away with?”
Phoenix is a tear-jerker that centers on a childhood tragedy involving Jacobson’s younger sister. “The trauma raged like a fire out of control. One event led to another, and it grew and grew,” Jacobson narrates in the film. “Then there was just ash.”
The film was an opportunity to honor Jacobson’s sister and her parents, particularly her father. “I see my dad as a superhero,” said the South Dakota-based LCSW. “He doesn’t get enough credit for how strong a man he is and everything he has done and still does for me and my sister.”
In Phoenix, Jacobson “utilizes exceptional videography and creative post-production to reveal the true heart of the social work profession,” said competition judge Tab Ballis, LCSW.
The project is an origin story. “It’s the birth of a social worker on a micro-level,” said Jacobson. “They learn from pain, which is how people become compassionate.” Instead of heading down a wrong path, Jacobson said she chose the path of empathy. “It’s an example of how you can take your own struggles and use them for good.”
Beasley, who works in the school system in Paulding County, Ga., wanted her reel to convey how impactful social workers are and can be.
There was one student she remembered. “A lot of people had given up on him,” said Beasley, adding that he was skipping school and sleeping on a park bench. “We can’t give up on people just because they aren’t moving at the pace that we believe they should be moving. Sometimes people need a little extra TLC.”
Years later, that student remembered Beasley as well. “‘You got me food. You helped me. Everything that you said was right,’” he told her. “One person believed in him. He was able to graduate. Now he is in the Marine Corps, traveling the world, doing what he loves,” Beasley said.
In the film titled Compassion Plus Action, Beasley crafted a story about the challenges and rewards of social work, said Ballis, whose film, Park View, was screened at the 2024 NASW Annual Conference.
School administrators had accused Beasley of wanting to save everyone. “No, my job is not to save everybody,” she said. “My goal is to reach people when I can reach them. My job is to push students toward their purpose, even if they don’t realize their purpose yet.”
Both award-winning auteurs stressed the importance of perseverance and determination. Social workers should have the strength and hope to endure in what may seem like hopeless times, Jacobson said. “Things can burn to the ground. As long as you don’t give up, you’ll rise from those ashes.”
You can watch both films by clicking the links above or on our socialworkmonth.org page.
Faye Beard is a freelance writer based in New York City.
