Filmmaker Rachel Fleischer spent four-a-half years working on the documentary "Without a Home." In it viewers meet several L.A. residents struggling with life for one reason or another.
It was a labor of love that sometimes broke her heart.
"I did it because I really want to help these people and I really want to bring awareness and attention and compassion to the issue," said Fleischer.
When it comes to being homeless unemployment, addiction and mental illness all live on our streets.
Fleischer takes a hard look at the problem. We met up with her at the Midnight Mission on L.A's skid row.
"I mean, there are so many homeless people who I talk to who just say, 'Thank you for talking to me. Nobody's talked to me all day,'" said Fleischer. "That to me is everything."
Fleischer is well aware that a lot of people in L.A. are unaware of just how bad the homeless problem is- tens of thousands of people with nowhere to live.
So when she looks out onto those streets, what does she see?
"I see what some people would actually describe as a third world country and it's crazy that it's right here in L.A.," said Fleischer.
"Without a Home" is on DVD now, and is headed to Video on Demand early next year.
