At 15, Jewel was living on the streets of Alaska while pursuing a music career.
These tools helped me rediscover the motivation inside myself so I could be happy again.
The singer is one of several celebrities appearing in the new documentaryLost in America.
Director Rotimi Rainwater joined the Navy after high school but quickly discharged once his mother was diagnosed with cancer.
He was 19 years old.
I lived in a park and then my car, Rainwater said.
Lost in Americais Rainwaters third film.
Its his follow-up toSugar, a 2013 feature starring Shenae Grimes as a 20-something homeless woman in Los Angeles.
At a Congressional screening for the film, Rainwater originated his idea for the documentary.
Not one member of Congress showed up, Rainwater said.
It was just a bunch of their staffers.
Nobody wanted to deal with it.
Filming forLost in Americastarted in 2013.
After five years, the film is now completed, and Rainwater is seeking distribution.
Jewel originally boarded the project as an interviewee before eventually becoming an executive producer.
She wants todays young adults to understand their agency.
There is an epidemic of teen homelessness and teen hopelessness that needs to be addressed, Jewel said.
See more in the exclusive trailer forLost in Americaabove.
