THE WAY HOME | Documentary Series

short-form documentary series

The Way Home is a short-form documentary series from KTF Films that focuses on the current homelessness epidemic in California - the state with the largest population of homeless people in the USA.

All episodes of The Way Home are available below.

Season 2: Official Trailer

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S3 - Episode 1:

Lessons Learned

As the COVID-19 pandemic becomes an endemic disease, many people wonder what short-term solutions to homelessness developed during the emergency response phase can be converted into long-term solutions that can be replicated nationwide. Record numbers of people were housed during the pandemic, but even more lost their jobs and, as rent moratoriums end, are at significant risk of falling into homelessness. What diversion and intervention programs are there to help protect those in need? Is building more affordable housing the only solution?

S3 - Episode 1:

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Lilly

In Portland, Oregon, homelessness is very visible throughout the city. Health Share Oregon is working to change that through their Metro 300 program that quickly puts temporary housing vouchers into people’s hands while also providing a direct path to permanent housing and support services. In this episode, we meet Lilly Killbear – a Native American who has experienced a great deal of trauma in her life and ended up without stable housing. She’s on a new, better path because of the Metro300 program.

S3 - Episode 3:

Data = Hope

In Walla Walla, Washington, youth homelessness has been rising for years. Now, though, the unsheltered have hope because of the data-driven work done by frontline community organizations. The young people featured in this episode have a brighter future for themselves, and now they share what they know to help others find their way off the street.

S3 - Episode 3:

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We're In This Together

Fairfax County, VA, is a suburb of Washington, DC, and one of the wealthiest communities in the US. They also have approximately 1,200 people experiencing homelessness every night. Although only 10% of the residents of Fairfax County identify as Black, over 50% of people living unsheltered within their community identify as Black. Now, an innovative diversion program is working to change that. The diversion team steps in to help BEFORE individuals lose their homes and provides what they need in a targeted way. In this episode, we meet the committed people making this diversion program a model for the nation. And we go with them to visit the people they’ve helped.

S2 - Episode 1:

A Sense of Urgency

A Sense of Urgency begins at the dawn of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many experts were predicting homeless communities around California and the world would be the hardest hit. In this episode, we meet some of the frontline workers who are grappling with this possibility and doing everything they can to help those in harm’s way.

S2 - Episode 1:

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Food, Water, Care

Food, Water, Care follows a committed team of doctors and nurses from Oakland, CA, as they head into homeless camps to provide urgent care to homeless individuals. Now, in addition to the usual health conditions they encounter, they’re also faced with COVID-19. While their primary function is providing health care, they’re also able to offer something they’ve never been able to before – housing.

S2 - Episode 3:

Repercussions of Racism

Repercussions of Racism documents LA Family Housing’s unprecedented efforts to get an entire encampment of homeless individuals off the streets and into a Project Roomkey hotel. Most of the people living in this camp are Black, and several of them grew up in this region of the San Fernando Valley because, for decades, it was one of the only places where Black Americans were allowed to buy homes.

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A Challenge. An Opportunity

A Challenge. An Opportunity focuses on the temporary housing initiatives enacted during the emergency phase of the pandemic when our state and local leaders found a way to swiftly move people from the street to hotels, trailers, and other unique housing solutions. What can we learn from this rapid response, and how can we make the temporary – permanent?

These films were made possible with support from Kaiser Permanente. Since 1945, Kaiser Permanente’s mission has been to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve.

stills from the documentary series - season 2

S1 - Episode 1:

How Did We Get Here?

In the first episode of The Way Home, we examine the origins of the homelessness crisis in the United States and how it has become an epidemic in California.

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The Most Vulnerable

More than half of homeless people in California are seniors. One pilot program in Northern California is focused on getting them off the street.

S1 - Episode 3:

The Invisible

In one California community volunteers, non-profit organizations, and the local government are working together to find creative ways to get people into sustainable housing … and it’s working.