Mental Health Storytelling Initiative
The Mental Health Storytelling Initiative (MHSI) uses the power of storytelling to support mental health — on screen and behind the camera, for both storytellers and their audiences. Launched in 2021 with support from MTV Entertainment Studios and housed at the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, MHSI oversees the Mental Health Storytelling Coalition, an unprecedented multi-sector partnership between more than 70 leading entertainment industry partners and mental health organizations, and the Mental Health Media Guide, a groundbreaking, comprehensive resource for content creators designed to help expand positive mental health portrayals.
The Coalition
The Mental Health Storytelling Coalition is an innovative and unparalleled collaboration that brings together over 70 leading organizations in the entertainment industry and mental health field. This groundbreaking partnership is dedicated to enhancing mental health awareness and understanding through the powerful medium of storytelling.
By uniting the creative prowess of the entertainment sector with the expert knowledge of mental health professionals, the coalition offers a unique platform for networking, collaboration, and The Mental Health Storytelling Coalition is an innovative and unparalleled collaboration that brings together over 70 leading organizations in the entertainment industry and mental health field. This groundbreaking partnership is dedicated to enhancing mental health awareness and understanding through the powerful medium of storytelling and mutual learning. Members have the opportunity to share best practices, gain new insights, and work together on projects that have the potential to make a significant impact on society’s perception of mental health issues. Our mission is to harness the collective influence and expertise of our partners to create narratives that foster a more informed, compassionate, and supportive mental health landscape.
Reach out to learn more at aii@usc.edu.
Resources
Strategic Advisement and Workshops
From brief mentions to dedicated storylines — discover how your projects, regardless of genre or format, can create positive mental health impact. Get started with dedicated strategic advisement on how to apply a mental health lens to your content. Then connect with a member of our coalition of qualified subject matter experts and experienced industry professionals who can help you identify areas of opportunity in any creative project while leaving space for you to do what you do best: storytelling.
Book one of our signature workshops to learn how to use your expertise to improve mental health for any audience:
The Connection Lens:
For studios and production companies: Help your team master the art and science of mental health storytelling. By blending the latest research with practical how-to guidance, this session offers your team the tools to create nuanced mental health portrayals that connect deeply across audiences.
For showrunners and writers’ rooms: Learn how to more deeply connect with your audience through authentic, nuanced mental health storytelling. Using case studies, writing prompts and interactive brainstorms, you’ll walk away with skills — and new story ideas — to implement into your current and future projects.
Industry 101:
How to be an Industry SME (for mental health practitioners and subject matter experts): As a subject matter consultant or mental health advisor to the entertainment industry, having a working knowledge of the production process is critical. Learn from experienced practitioners and industry insiders everything you need to know about how to effectively advise creators on mental health depictions across the spectrum of wellbeing.
Media Guide
Discover Storytelling Tips and Connect with Mental Health Experts
The Mental Health Media Guide is a groundbreaking, comprehensive resource for content creators designed to help expand authentic mental health portrayals in entertainment. This interactive tool’s best practices and evidence-based recommendations can support storytellers at any phase in the production process, across topics, and with an eye toward representing diverse communities.
Research
Break Ground with Original Research
The Mental Health Storytelling Initiative is the gold standard for insights related to depictions of mental health in entertainment. Powered by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, the MHSI collaborates with experts and partners with groups looking to examine the nature of storytelling and the impact it can have. Read our latest reports, and reach out to learn more about partnering with AII’s world-class research team.
Behind the Camera
Support Mental Health for Cast and Crew
Reach out (aii@usc.edu) to learn more about our pilot programs with mental health care providers who specialize in working with the entertainment industry.