'Minimum Max,' Teen With ADHD: 'I'm Destined To Be A Failure'

'Based On What My Grades Say, I'm Destined To Be A Failure'

"Minimum Max" is the title of this short film and its leading fictional character, but it was inspired by the real life of a teenage director named Josh Ovalle.

The character "Max," like Ovalle, has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 1 in 10 children have been diagnosed with it. Recently, experts have begun to question the long-term effectiveness of using medication to treat ADHD, but drugs like Adderall or Ritalin, which are low-cost and treat symptoms quickly, are still widely prescribed.

The message of Ovalle's short film is anti-medication, and the story follows a young boy who is "destined to be a failure" because of his short attention span and lack of academic success. He is prescribed pills to help him concentrate, but they only make him feel worse. The visuals Ovalle and his co-director Phil Venti use to tell the story are creative and impressive (it's hard to believe they are only teens) and the clip has already started to go viral on YouTube.

Watch the moving video, above, and tweet @HuffPostTeen with your reactions.

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Mareshia Rucker

Inspirational Teens

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