What is Mental Health Coordination?
Mental health coordination is a cutting-edge artistic practice that supports the wellness of every person connected to a creative project.
A mental health coordinator is a vetted theatre or film artist AND mental health professional who operates at the intersection of those two fields.
We use tools from both fields to support joyful, professional, accessible, inclusive, work for every human in the creative space.
What We Do
Great question! We do a lot of things. Every project is different, but here are some ways we can help:
- Work with producers, directors, or stage managers to audit the script for potentially challenging topics or liability and help find support.
- One-on-ones with artists to identify possible challenges and identify practical support solutions.
- Support responsible content disclosures and safe audience experiences
- Identify and coordinate access needs.
- Work alongside directors to stage tricky moments or topics.
- Support group facilitation
- Dramaturgy or presenting research to help the room understand the nuance of specific challenges presented in the script.
- Act as a presence to center consent and mitigate power dynamics.
- Step in if there is a mental health crisis or challenge.
- Certify team members in Mental Health First
As artists and choreographers who are trained in mental health and the arts, we can be especially helpful if a project contains:
- Themes or depictions of mental health or substance use challenges
- Trauma, violence, or heightened emotions
- Intimacy/or hyper-exposed work (inculding simulated sex, nuditiy, or other activites)
- Experiences that may be close to the artists’ own experiences.
Though our work is different wherever we go, we know one thing for sure: we are intentional, not careful. Our work helps make stories better and more compelling.
Safer sets. Safer stages. Kick-ass stories.
FAQ
Are you therapists?
We are mental health professionals, and some may be licensed therapists, but we are not YOUR therapist. TlDr: We are here to support mental wellness, not treat mental illness.
What we don’t do:
- Create, suggest, or follow treatment plans
- Diagnose mental health conditions
What we love to do:
- Hold space for lived experiences and troubleshoot challenges in the space.
- Help identify potential mental health issues that have to do with the script, the bodies in the space, power dynamics, lived experiences, and more
- Mitigate those potential challenges with evidence based mental health techniques, and support effective storytelling through specific theatrical techniques.
- Recognize when a challenge requires a different professional, and help navigate resources available.
I’m an artist/therapist/mental health advocate in the arts. Can I work with you?
Thanks for your work! We would love to hear from you. We are always looking for partners in this journey. Check out our Join Us page for opportunities or to get in touch.
I know my organization/project needs help, but I am not sure if you are the ones that can help us. How do I know if you can?
Even if we aren’t the ones who can ultimately support your need, we are happy to connect you with our incredible resource network. Please get in touch, and we can figure something out!
Who do you work with?
MHC’s work in theatre and film, in educational and professional environments, in projects large and small. We also can work in individual projects, for whole organizations, or one on one with single artists as a coach or consultant. We all have mental health, so we all could use mental health support in our creative spaces.
INSTILL SAFETY AND REGULATION, SO PEOPLE DON’T GET HURT.
Let’s work together!
