“Kids’ Mental Health Starts With Us,” say
actor David Arquette, actor/singer Lucy Hale and a dozen other actors, musicians, athletes, journalists and others in a :90 PSA directed by
actor/filmmaker Soleil Moon Frye.
The spot’s call-to-action: “Find free expert-developed tools and resources” at the Kids’ Mental Health Foundation’s
website. The aim, per a press release: “to normalize dialogue around mental health and encourage families to talk openly.”
The PSA is being distributed to national TV media by the
Entertainment Industry Foundation (EIF), which the nonprofit says has secured over 2,300 pickups for its earlier “From the Yellow
Couch” series since 2014. The “Yellow Couch” PSAs featured conversations with kids, families, educators, and coaches with the aim of making mental health as crucial as physical
health.
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EIF is also distributing an audio version of “Kids’ Mental Health Starts With Us” to national radio outlets.
In addition to the new PSA, Frye has directed a
longer 10-minute version that focuses more on the celebs’ own mental health journeys when they were kids.
A child and
then-teenage actor in the ‘80s (“Punky Brewster”) and ‘90s, Frye’s nonfiction directorial career has often touched on mental health issues, including last year’s
Paramount+ series, “The Carters: Hurts to Love You,” her 2021 Hulu documentary “Kid 90,” which looked at young actors of the 1990s; and her latest feature, “Werewolf in
the Waves,” currently on the film festival circuit,
Founded by Nationwide Children’s Hospital in 2018 as the “On Our Sleeves Movement for Children’s Mental Health,” the name
was changed to the Kids Mental Health Foundation two years ago.
“At a moment when kids are facing unprecedented stressors, normalizing conversations around mental health is
transformative,” Ariana Hoet, Ph.D., executive clinical director of the Foundation, said in a statement.” We want adults to know that they have the power to promote every
child’s mental wellness.”