Chris Temple

Director & Founder of Optimist

Vitalik: An Ethereum Story

Rosa, a young Mayan woman, sits alone. She stares into the camera and for the first time shares her story. She has wrestled with rejection, forgiveness and the fight to keep her child alive. Now 27, she must overcome her past to follow the dreams she once thought impossible.

Rosa - These Storms

During the largest food crisis in a century, a group of college students step up to help those facing hunger. Their small local effort inspires hope nationally and motivates 600+ students to drop everything to feed millions of families.

Abundance: The Farmlink Story

Glauber “Pro” Contessoto—an immigrant working multiple jobs and living in a 220-square-foot apartment—gambles his life savings on a joke cryptocurrency. Two months later, he becomes “The Dogecoin Millionaire” and a hero to his growing YouTube following. 

It’s easy to get rich online. But as Pro will soon discover, it’s even easier to lose it all. Amateur investors like Pro must navigate a landscape that’s rife with scams, bad advice, and a fear of missing out. THIS IS NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE exposes the startling risks and rewards of today’s market through expert commentary and the anxiety-inducing stories of real people trying to make millions.

This Is Not Financial Advice

Lizbeth Mateo is an attorney who swore to uphold the Constitution. She’s also undocumented. When a client takes sanctuary in a church, Lizbeth’s own experience guides their fight for justice.

The Undocumented Lawyer

A single mother with a passion for nursing, Lisa Creason wanted the freedom to pursue her dreams. When an unjust law prohibited her from doing so, she took the fight into her own hands and ended up opening doorways for thousands like her.

Free To Care

Paperboy Love Prince is a far cry from your typical New York City mayoral candidate. They can often be found in Washington Square Park standing on top of a bedazzled school bus rapping about social issues. When they announced their run for mayor, many laughed them off as a joke candidate.

Paperboy Love Prince Runs for Mayor

Over 30 years ago, Lisa Creason attempted to rob a Subway cash register. She had no plan, no weapon, and no get-away car. It was an act of desperation to feed her infant daughter, and resulted in a criminal record she couldn't escape. While in nursing school, a law passed that prevented her from becoming a nurse, her only path out of poverty.

Free to Care

Rosa Coj Bocel's smile is infectious. Her eyes shine and her grin turns into a full-blown laugh as she talks about how much she has waited for this day to arrive. This day is her graduation from Solola High School at age 25. Rosa - These Storms is Rosa's story. Rosa's voice weaves quietly through as she talks about growing up in a small village in rural Guatemala.

Rosa: These Storms

Four young friends set out to live on just $1 a day for two months in rural Guatemala. Armed with only a video camera, they battle hunger, parasites, and extreme financial stress as they attempt to survive life on the edge.

Living on One Dollar

Five Years North is the coming-of-age story of Luis, an undocumented boy in New York City desperate to bring the American Dream back home to Guatemala. Alone, he struggles to work, study, and evade Judy—the conflicted Cuban-American ICE agent who patrols his neighborhood.

Five Years North

Immerse into virtual reality and experience the journey of Firas, a 27-year-old Syrian refugee as he flees Aleppo and builds a new life for his two-year-old son. A 360-degree interactive experience, For My Son was featured in Wired magazine and is also an exhibit at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington D.C.

For My Son

Salam (Hello) Neighbor is a film and campaign to connect the world to refugees. The film follows the journey of Chris and Zach as the first filmmakers ever allowed to be registered and given a tent inside of a refugee camp.

From meeting Um Ali, a woman struggling to overcome cultural barriers to the street smart, 10-year-old Raouf, whose trauma hides just beneath his ever present smile, Zach and Chris uncover inspiring stories of individuals rallying, against all odds, to rebuild their lives and those of their neighbors.

Salam Neighbor

Living on One Dollar is an award-winning documentary following four friends as they live on less than $1 a day for two months in rural Guatemala. They battle hunger, parasites, and the realization that there are no easy answers. But they’re inspired by the generosity and strength of people they meet in the village. Meeting Rosa, her husband Anthony, and 12-year-old Chino gives the group hope that there are still ways to make a difference.