2022 Authentically Inclusive Representation Summit: Mental Health
Agenda
Friday, September 30, 2022
UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center
425 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90095
8:45-9:30am
Event Check-In
Ballroom A&B, Level 1
9:30-10:20am
Welcome and Keynote Address
Ballroom A&B, Level 1
Dr. Yalda T. Uhls, Founder & Executive Director of the Center for Scholars & Storytellers (CSS) will kick off the day and welcome our keynote speaker.
Keynote: Matt Richtel, Pulitzer-Prize winning New York Times reporter and bestselling author of narrative non-fiction books, and thrillers; writer of The Inner Pandemic, a 2022 New York Times series on the crisis in adolescent mental health.
Concurrent Sessions - 10:30-11:30am and
Continue the Conversation for each from 11:40am-12:10pm
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION: These are 30-minute sessions following each panel. This interactive, but structured, Q&A will provide an opportunity for attendees to engage in conversation with the panelists and bring their unique ideas and insights to the table.
Panel - Storytelling: Reducing Stigma and Positive Modeling
Illumination, Level 2
How can storytellers help explode the prevalent myths and stereotypes in mental health? The panel will dive into the research on mental health in storytelling and discuss underlying principles and practical lessons learned.
Moderator: Ruben Garcia (Executive and Co-Head of Cultural Business Strategy at CAA)
Panelists: Joy Gorman Wettels (Impact Producer and Founder of Joy Coalition), Jamila Hunter (EVP of Original Programming and Impact at Freeform), Nancy Santiago (Deputy Director of Engagement for the Office of the U.S. Surgeon General)
Continue the Conversation - Storytelling: Reducing Stigma and Positive Modeling
Panel - Digital Resources that Connect with Youth
Optimist A, Level 2
CSS research found that 92% of teens looked for mental health information after watching a popular TV show. This panel will provide new ways to approach second screen content that can go even further in supporting the ways teens search for series-inspired information.
Moderator: Mana Yamaguchi (Vice President of Inclusive Marketing and Business Strategy for the Lionsgate Motion Picture Group)
Panelists: Gael Aitor (Creator and Host of the Teenager Therapy podcast), Sarah Gilman (Actress, Writer, and Mental Health Activist, CSI: Vegas, I Didn’t Do It), Erik Giusti (Music Marketing Expert), Asia Jackson (Actress, Producer, Content Creator)
Continue the Conversation - Digital Resources that Connect with Youth
Panel - Evolving Male Representation
Optimist B, Level 2
On screen representations of men and women can exacerbate underlying gendered mental health issues. Currently, the suicide rate for men is 3.9 times higher than for women. This panel will examine boys and men’s gender roles, stereotypes, and their intersections with mental health.
Moderator: Dr. Caroline Heldman (Executive Director of The Representation Project and Professor of Critical Theory and Social Justice Department at Occidental College)
Panelists: Justin Baldoni (Actor, director, producer, entrepreneur and changemaker, Jane the Virgin, The Man Enough podcast), Ashanti Branch (Founder and Executive Director of the Ever Forward Club), Phakiso “Kiki” Collins (Producer/Movement Artist/Curator; Vice President, Original Series, Paramount), Bill Wrubel (Emmy-winning writer and producer, Modern Family, Ted Lasso)
Continue the Conversation - Evolving Male Representation
12:15-1:20pm
Lunch
Centennial Terrace, Level 3
A buffet lunch from the award-winning Plateia restaurant will be served outside on the Centennial Terrace.
General Session - 1:30-2:20pm
Panel - Youth Media REPresentation
Ballroom A&B, Level 1
Hear directly from teens as they speak candidly about what they think about today’s media landscape and how it intersects with the issues they are passionate about, including mental health and diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA).
Moderators: Dr. Yalda T. Uhls (Founder & Executive Director of CSS)
Panelists: CSS Youth Media REPresentation Team members - Diego Gonzalez, Dani Marin, Sayuri Nagai, Sophia Ramos, Emma Wei-Ten
Concurrent Sessions - 2:30-3:20pm
Panel - Storytelling: Unpacking Cultural Stereotypes
Illumination, Level 2
Many communities are particularly vulnerable to mental health stigma due to societal pressures and systemic issues. This panel will discuss how specific cultural patterns intersect with mental health and how storytelling can unpack stereotypes and model help seeking.
Moderator: Rebecca Sun (Senior Editor of Diversity and Inclusion, The Hollywood Reporter)
Panelists: Amy Aniobi (Writer/Director/Producer, Insecure, 2 Dope Queens & Founder, SuperSpecial and TRIBE Writers Program, ), Keely Cat-Wells (Entrepreneur, Disability Activist and Founder of C Talent), Nicole Harjo (Senior Vice President of Development for Paramount Television Studios)
Panel - Digital Resources and Caring Adults
Optimist A, Level 2
This panel will dive into how various digital resources can help spark important conversations between adults and teens, specifically regarding the topic of mental health.
Moderator: Dr. Candice Odgers (Professor of Psychological Science and Informatics at the University of California, Irvine and Co-Director of the Child & Brain Development Program at CIFAR)
Panelists: Lauren Glaubach (Director, Global Head of Family Partnerships and Programming, YouTube), Adrian Ledda (Senior Manager of Inclusive Game Design at Activision Blizzard), Deborah Marcus (Executive Director of the CAA Foundation)
Panel - Queer Youth and Mental Health
Optimist B, Level 2
While storytellers have traditionally been ahead of the curve in portraying sexual and gender minorities, the Trevor project found that LGBTQIA+ youth still have much higher rates of attempting suicide. This panel will discuss how storytelling and second screen resources can support these youth as they struggle with mental health problems.
Moderator: Dr. Amy Green (Clinical Psychologist and Head of Research at Hopelab)
Panelists: Kate Purdy (Writer/Creator/Producer/Director, Hive House Projects, Undone, Bojack Horseman), Tim Palazzola (Vice President of Original Programming across Paramount’s Entertainment and Youth Group and Paramount +), Raphael Simon (AKA Pseudonymous Bosch, author of The Secret Series)
General Session - 3:30-4:10pm
Panel - UCLA Deans
Ballroom A&B, Level 1
Hear about UCLA’s latest cutting edge research and programs from the Dean of Life Sciences and the Dean of Theater, Film and Television, moderated by CSS’s Founding Director.
Moderator: Dr. Yalda T. Uhls (Founder & Executive Director of CSS)
Panelists: Dr. Tracy Johnson (Dean of UCLA Division of Life Sciences, holder of the Keith and Cecilia Terasaki Presidential Endowed Chair, a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor, and a professor of molecular, cell, and developmental biology), Brian Kite (Interim Dean at the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television; Professional Theater Director)
4:10-4:30pm
Continue the Conversation
Ballroom A&B, Level 1
Dr. Yalda T. Uhls will recap the day and talk about what comes next in this work.