Projects like “Singularity Watch” and the Peer Mental Health initiatives help demonstrate how Film/Video-Based Therapy operates in practice beyond traditional psychotherapy models. These projects are not simply about making films for entertainment or generic storytelling. They demonstrate how media creation, collaborative production, symbolic narrative, technology, and community engagement can function as transformative processes. The framework examines how people: - construct meaning through media, - process identity through narrative, - engage emotionally and socially through collaborative filmmaking, - use symbolic storytelling to explore trauma and growth, - and develop purpose, connection, communication skills, vocational direction, and social reintegration through participatory media experiences. Peer Mental Health was important because it showed how filmmaking and media participation could intersect with: - peer support, - recovery-oriented systems, - social connection, - workforce development, - identity reconstruction, - and community-based mental health approaches. The emphasis was not merely “therapy” in the narrow clinical sense. The work explored how media participation itself could become part of: - human development, - empowerment, - education, - rehabilitation, - social engagement, - and post-traumatic growth. “Singularity Watch” also reflected broader themes in Film/Video-Based Therapy involving: - media psychology, - human-technology interaction, - AI, - virtual reality, - symbolic futures, - identity, - and the psychological impact of emerging media systems on society. The projects helped illustrate that Film/Video-Based Therapy is an interdisciplinary media-psychology framework examining how audiovisual media and participatory storytelling processes affect: - cognition, - emotion, - behavior, - identity, - embodiment, - community, - and cultural meaning-making. This differs substantially from simply labeling the work as “digital storytelling therapy” or reducing it to expressive arts techniques alone.

As part of Post-Traumatic Growth and Film/Video-Based Therapy, each contributor has an individual author page that introduces themselves and the perspective they bring to the field. According to our most recent correspondence with the production team, these author pages are intended to serve as companion links in the book. I’m sharing them here so that: Contributors can easily find one another’s work, Readers (present and future) have a deeper context for each chapter. This community functions as a living extension of the book. Below are links to each contributor’s page. Feel free to add a brief comment under your link if you’d like to highlight an update, project, or reflection since publication. (This is an educational and professional space; links are shared for context, not promotion.) Contributor Pages — Companion Links for Post-Traumatic Growth and Film/Video-Based Therapy Below are the official author page links provided for each contributor in the book. These links provide background and professional context, supporting deeper engagement with each author’s work. Forewords Albert “Skip” Rizzo — Foreword🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/usc-keck-and-bravemind/ Lynn Crandall — Foreword🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/usc-keck-and-bravemind/ Introduction Joshua L. Cohen — Through the Lens of Healing🔗 https://www.routledge.com/authors/i13230-dr-joshua-cohen Chapters 1. Therapeutic Filmmaking for Posttraumatic Growth — Vignesh Vyas🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/therapeutic-filmmaking-for-post-traumaticgrowth/ 2. Filmmaking as an Alchemical Vessel in the Process of Art Therapy — Judyta Daria Potocka🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-2filmmaking-as-an-alchemicalvessel-in-the-process-of-arttherapy/ 3. Fear of the Future, Now: Personal Social Media Narratives in Posttraumatic Growth and “Eco-Anxiety” among Gen Z and Millennials — Gaia Ardia, Karim Farsakh & Paola Lamberti🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-3fear-of-the-future-now-personal-socialmedia-narratives-in-posttraumatic-growthand-eco-anxiety-among-gen-z-andmillennialsgaia-ardia-karim-farsakh-paola-lamberti/ 4. Eye Movement Therapy and Cinema — Mal Williamson🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-4eye-movement-therapy-and-cinema/ 5. Mourning with Musical Media: A Media Psychologist’s Experience and Analysis — Patrick E. McNabb🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-5-mourning-with-musical-media-a-mediapsychologists-experience-and-analysispatrick-e-mcnabbwith-additional-commentary-by-amethyst-mcnabb/ 6. Live Concerts and the Pathway toward Ventral Vagal Regulation — Joyce (Fangyu) Zhang🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-6live-concerts-and-the-pathway-towardventral-vagal-regulationjoyce-fangyu-zhang/ 7. Intimate Partner Violence, Posttraumatic Growth, and Creative Therapeutic Approaches — Anna Chiara Sabatino & Valeria Saladino🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-7intimate-partner-violence-post-traumaticgrowth-and-creative-therapeuticapproaches/ 8. Personal Cinema and Digital Self-Representation on the Therapeutic Set — Anna Chiara Sabatino🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-8-personal-cinema-and-digital-self-representation-on-the-therapeutic-set/ 9. Digital Media and Immersive Therapeutic Approaches in Interpersonal Violence and Trauma Processing — Anna Chiara Sabatino & Valeria Saladino🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-9-digital-media-and-trauma-processing/ 10. Participatory Video as a Psychosocial Intervention in Migratory Trauma: Theories and Practice — Alessandro Ciardi🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-10-participatory-video-as-a-psychosocialintervention-in-migratory-traumatheories-and-practicealessandro-ciardi/ 11. Posttraumatic Growth and Documentary Storytelling in Grillo — Dima Puchkarev🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-11-post-traumatic-growth-and-documentary/ 12. From Virtual Skies to Real-World Impact: The Evolution of 3D Simulations in Training and Gaming — Robert Salinas🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-12-from-virtual-skies-to-real-world-impactthe-evolution-of-3d-simulations-intraining-and-gamingrobert-salinas/ 13. Film As Therapy: The Healing Power of Story — Lidia Huerta🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-13film-as-therapy/ 14. Sounds of the Soul: Music, Resistance, and Healing — Lisa Whealy🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-14-sounds-of-the-soulmusic-resistance-and-healinglisa-whealy/ 15. Turning Trauma into Healing: Storytelling for Recovery — Lisa Regina🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-15turning-trauma-into-healingstorytelling-for-recoverylisa-regina/ 16. Experiencing Your Experience: The Cinematic Craft and Authentic Embodiment — Paul Petschek🔗 https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-16-experiencing-your-experiencethe-cinematic-craft-andauthentic-embodimentpaul-petschek/

Lisa Whealey, award-winning director and author in Post Traumatic Growth and Film/Video Based Therapy. Winner “SOUNDS OF THE SOUL” by Lisa Whealy It is an honor to be featured as a Violinist in the New York Independent Cinema Awards Winner for Documentary Short “SOUNDS OF THE SOUL” @lisaazdreamer @violinrichmond @newyorkindependentcinemaawards #soundsofthesoul #lisawhealy #newyorkindependentcinemaawards #therapeuticadvertising #posttraumaticgrowth

Fear of the Future, Now: Personal SocialMedia Narratives in Posttraumatic Growthand “Eco-Anxiety” Among Gen Z and Millennials https://filmandvideobasedtherapy.com/chapter-3fear-of-the-future-now-personal-socialmedia-narratives-in-posttraumatic-growthand-eco-anxiety-among-gen-z-andmillennialsgaia-ardia-karim-farsakh-paola-lamberti/

Hey everyone I want to highlight something really special my friend Frank Chindamo is building: LaughMD (laughmd.com). Prof. Frank Chindamo, CHP, is the founder and CEO of LaughMD, a digital health company that uses curated comedy videos as therapeutic care in hospitals and recovery centers. A veteran comedy creator and producer, he began his career writing and producing short-form comedy for major outlets like HBO, Showtime, Comedy Central, and even contributed in the early days of “Saturday Night Live” and “Ghostbusters.” He later became a pioneer in mobile and web video through his company Fun Little Movies, one of the first U.S. studios to create comedy specifically for mobile phones. A Certified Humor Professional, Frank now combines his expertise in entertainment, technology, and teaching (including roles as an adjunct professor at USC, UCLA, and Chapman University) to advance the idea of laughter as evidence-based medicine and to improve patient experiences worldwide. LaughMD is a science‑backed wellness app that uses curated comedy to reduce stress, ease pain, and improve mood—for patients, caregivers, and even healthcare teams. It’s not “just entertainment”; it’s laughter as medicine, with clean, safe, trigger‑free comedy tailored to individual preferences and used in hospitals, recovery centers, and at home. Frank and the team have worked with doctors, comedians, and researchers to turn the idea that “laughter is the best medicine” into an actual, measurable tool for healing. If you care about mental health, patient experience, or using humor as real therapy, this is a project worth checking out. Learn more: laughmd.com If you tell me the tone you want (more casual, more “founder‑story”, or more clinical/healthcare‑focused), I can tweak this to match Frank’s voice and the specific Skool community he’s in.