StigmaBeat launch of short films co-created by rural young people aimed at reducing mental health stigma
A unique new storytelling project will launch at Latrobe Youth Space in Morwell on Saturday 19 November, with a new series of short films co-created by young people in Gippsland focused around reducing mental health stigma.
In July 2022, 18 young people aged 15-25 years from Gippsland participated in two StigmaBeat workshops, co-facilitated by peer leaders from Satellite Foundation, who also have lived experience of parental mental health challenges. The highly interactive workshops were designed to create a safe and inclusive space for deep and brave conversations.
Young people engaged in discussion, games and creative exploration. Questions included: What is stigma? How does it impact on you? What would your life look like if there was no stigma? Where do you experience stigma? What would make a change? Who needs to hear these messages?
As an outcome of the workshops, three films that aim to reduce stigma for young people were created. These films will be publicly screened for the first time at 2pm on 19 November at Latrobe Youth Space, where the workshops took place.
“The willingness of the young people to share their stories and connect with each other was truly awesome. Their collective energy, knowledge and creativity made for very rich conversations and clarity about what needs to change,” said Rose Cuff, CEO of Satellite Foundation.
The Gippsland StigmaBeat project grew from a desire to identify and address the structural drivers of stigma, as experienced by rural young people, whose parents experience mental health challenges. Previous research formed the foundation of this project, which explored the concept and experience of stigma for families where a parent has mental health challenges.
Project lead, Dr Rochelle Hine from Monash Rural Health explains, “we found that mental health stigma interacts with and exacerbates other forms of stigma and discrimination, such as sexism, racism and homophobia. We were curious to find out how these findings might resonate for a cohort of rural young people.”
Following the launch on 19 November, the StigmaBeat films will be widely promoted and distributed. Further research will explore what impact they have on attitudes and behaviour. The young people spoke about encountering stigma in many settings including schools, health services, and families. The films provide examples of stigmatising behaviour that people can identify but may not have thought of as problematic, demonstrate how to create safe spaces for open conversations, and show the possibilities of a world without stigma.
This project was funded by an FRRR ABC Heywire Youth Innovation Grant and by the Latrobe Health Assembly. It was made possible by an international research collaboration between Monash University, Satellite Foundation, Australian Catholic University, and researchers from Canada, the United Kingdom and Sweden.
Register for the StigmaBeat launch and film screening: stigmabeat.eventbrite.com