Find Your Story
Identity, family, community, dreams. One prompt: what story only you can tell?
Academy Museum Teen Council
Our Mission
To put real storytelling opportunities in film, music, and the arts into the hands of LA teens.
"Everyone has a story worth telling. I'm going to help them find it."
My name is Knox Yoon, and I am the founder of Next 100, a student-led initiative built to expand access to storytelling, arts education, and creative opportunity for young people who might not otherwise get it.
The idea started with my own story. During the pandemic, I picked up a $30 guitar. What began as a simple hobby turned into a source of confidence, self-expression, and connection. Music helped me find my voice during a hard time, and it eventually led me to opportunities through the GRAMMY Museum, the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures, public speaking programs, and leadership experiences I never imagined possible.
As I got more involved, I realized something: many students never get the chance to discover what they are capable of, simply because they lack access to arts education, mentorship, and creative community. That realization pushed me to build Next 100.
I am still developing the pilot model through conversations with educators, museum professionals, community leaders, and youth program directors, and have presented the concept to leadership at the Academy Museum along the way. The initiative remains student-led and is currently in the pilot development phase.
My goal is simple: help other students find their own version of the $30 guitar that helped me find mine.
Knox Yoon, Founder
The Academy Museum sits inside an industry stepping into its next century. Next 100 is a bet on who gets to shape it: not just the students who already had a way in, but the ones who never got the invite. The name is the mission.
A free, week-long storytelling intensive for LA teens, centered on film, music, and the arts, built around one question: what is a story only you can tell? It ends in a live showcase called "100 Seconds to Tell Your Story."
Identity, family, community, dreams. One prompt: what story only you can tell?
Hands-on intro to the art forms: film, music, screenwriting, and more.
Production day. Cameras rolling, mics live, work in progress.
Editing and one-on-one coaching to sharpen the work.
"100 Seconds to Tell Your Story": live in front of family, mentors, and community.
We are in conversation with organizations like the Writers Guild Foundation and the GRAMMY Museum on mentorship and support, and reaching out to LAUSD schools and community organizations across the city, including Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools, Miguel Contreras Learning Complex, Manual Arts High School, and Sylmar Charter High School, along with groups like Inner-City Arts, Heart of Los Angeles, A Place Called Home, the Boys and Girls Club, and the YMCA.
One week won't close the access gap on its own, but it will tell us something concrete: does real exposure to storytelling, mentorship, and a live audience meaningfully change how a student sees their own creative future? After the showcase, we will survey every student, gather reflections from students and parents, and use what we learn to decide what comes next.
This is where the proof goes once the pilot happens: student testimonials, photos from the week, and any local press coverage.
Local press coverage will be added here following the pilot.
Filmmaker, musician, journalist, or public speaker? We are building the mentor team for the pilot week and want people who have done the work and want to share it.
I want to mentorSchool, youth organization, or community group interested in hosting or co-presenting the pilot? We are actively looking for one school or organization partner to anchor Phase Two.
Let's partnerKnow a teen, ages 13-17, in the LA area who should be in the room? Get on the list for updates on when and where it happens.
Get updates