Graysen Johansen · Class of 2025 · Sunset High ·  Crescent City, CA

Graysen Johansen’s poetic journey moves from page and stage to the screen in Artists Breaking Barriers, a new KEET-PBS documentary that follows five California North-Coast teens—Graysen and fellow Sunset High artist Savannah Burke among them, from Del Norte County—who turn art into civic action.

The first time Graysen remembers putting a poem on paper, they were a fourth-grader at Pine Grove Elementary. “I got interested right away,” they recall. “Later, at Mountain School, the poetry club kept the spark alive—then I got to Sunset High, and my teacher, Ms. Troyna, said, ‘You should try memorizing a poem; I think you’d do a really great job.’ I was terrified, but it went well. Soon, I was performing for the entire school, and I eventually traveled to Sacramento for the Poetry Out Loud state finals to cheer on our school.”

“People don’t realize what poetry can do,” Graysen says. “You can write something that sounds beautiful, but if you really analyze it—wow, it might be calling out serious injustice. That’s the power: poetry is your voice, your whole self, arranged so others can understand, feel, and process it.”

Most of Graysen’s literary mentors are also personal friends from Sacramento’s vibrant open-mic scene: Andru Defeye, Diamond Key, and J. Rowe. “They’ve shaped their community through poetry, and that’s what I want for Crescent City—arms wide open.”

Mental-health struggles among Del Norte youth pushed Graysen to launch a monthly open mic that lets “two people who might dislike each other come together in a common safe space.” Graysen stresses that no one else needs to interpret a poem the same way the author does. “They can’t feel exactly what I feel, but they can value it in their way.”

Before graduating in 2025, Graysen plans to publish a collaborative chapbook with six or seven young poets from across California. “Doing a solo book still scares me,” they admit, “but together we’ll each contribute three or four poems and talk about why we write. That makes it possible.”

“In two or three years, I want a Poetry Center of Del Norte—a place where art isn’t just talked about but actually shown and heard,” Graysen says. “Ten years? I honestly don’t know. But if that center exists, I’ll be happy.”

The next chapter of Graysen’s journey can be seen on the big screen in Artists Breaking Barriers, KEET-PBS’s brand-new documentary that follows North Coast teens turning art into action. See raw rehearsal footage, behind-the-scenes shots from the monthly open mic, and the moment Graysen’s words light up an entire auditorium—then stick around to meet the artists in person. The film premieres live on May 7 at 7 PM in the Arcata Playhouse and comes home for a special Del Norte screening on May 10 at 6 PM in the Del Norte Community School IMC. Bring your friends, your questions, and maybe even a poem in your pocket.

 

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