AWEARNESS: What was your initial inspiration for filming the documentary 18 in '08?

David: On the night of the 2004 election, I was sitting around with a bunch of friends watching the results come in. And the next morning, I was thinking why didn't we see the huge turnout among young voters that we had expected and hoped for, and that got me thinking what can I do to change that the next time around. After thinking about how I could play a role in getting young people out in record numbers for 2008, I saw no other option but to make a statement through film, a very "comfortable" and effective medium and design an extensive grassroots outreach effort around it.

AWEARNESS: Tell us a little more about the college tour you have planned for the fall.

David: In the fall, from September through election day, we are going to be going to over 50 colleges and 50 high schools around the country, screening the film, hosting talk backs with politicians, celebrities, and activists talking about the importance of being involved and action you can take.

We'll be going all over the country (Louisiana, New York, Vermont, Nebraska, Ohio, Florida, Ohio, Atlanta, California, and Mississippi to name just a few), and to a diverse range of campuses. We're booking the events now, so anyone reading this who wants to host an event in the fall or really any time should contact us on our website.

AWEARNESS: What are some of the grassroots initiatives (online or offline) that are being organized in collaboration with the documentary film?

David: 18 in '08 is much more than a film - it's a movement - so we work on a broad range of efforts. In addition to ongoing screenings and forums and the fall tour, we are working on a series of congressional and Senate debates in hot races focused on youth issues, making all the footage from the film available online, a major new blog with our website, a major effort to get the film into high schools on a wide scale basis across the country, a celebrity PSA campaign to increase youth awareness of the need to register and vote. We are working with groups as diverse as the National College Democrats and Republicans, National Constitution Center, Elderhostel, Comcast, The CW TV Network, mobile technology company Loopt, and a whole host of other partners to bring 18 in ¹08 and voter awareness across platforms and party lines.

AWEARNESS: For the film, you interviewed a number of notable political figures ­ including John Kerry, Jeb Bush, Wesley Clark and James Carville. Which interview surprised you the most or caused you to re-think your previous assumptions?

David: I interviewed over 100 people for the film, and each interview was fascinating and I learned so much from this incredible range of people I was able to sit down with and talk to about these issues. As a self admitted political junkie, it was also quite exciting on a personal level to meet so many people who I had watched and heard about from afar. That being said, I think what surprised me most was that many of the politicians I interviewed on both sides of the aisle were not aware of the increases in young voter turnout in 2000, 2004, and 2006, which concerned me and made me realize that not only is it important to get more young people to vote and be involved, but to reinforce the fact that we are turning out and are involved to the media and to politicians so that they start responding to our issues and concerns as constituents and part of a growing voting bloc.