For years, many people have asked why there couldn’t be a television channel dedicated to increasing public understanding of mental health conditions and eliminating the stigma that too often surrounds them.
Now there is one.
Arcos Films has launched the Mental Health Channel (MHC) offering 12 regular documentary series (or shows) with a total of 47 episodes currently filmed out of 120 that are planned. Each episode is about seven minutes in length.
Every episode is available 24/7 on the MHC website “free to view, free to share and commercial free.”
MHC took off in earnest over Mental Health Month and is working with NAMI state organizations and affiliates to co-sponsor local screening events in months ahead.
Web-based networks like MHC are a wave of the future in communications technology. Tune in now and you can eventually tell others that you were present at the creation.
The channel seeks to provide “engaging, enlightening, informative programming, commercial free” to help all viewers improve mental health and to change minds overall. Its approach is non-partisan, collaborative and solutions-oriented and intended to inspire action.
Episodes on the MHC website to date include "A Circle of Friends" about Emily, who has dealt with anxiety and depression since age 6, “The Right Response,” about San Antonio’s police crisis intervention team and “Ill in the Family,” about May Howard and her sister, who live the bipolar disorder they inherited from their parents. (See videos below)
The 12 show themes are:
- The Inside Story
- The Journey Home
- Critical Years
- Cracking Up (Comedy)
- Mental Fitness
- Dr. Brain
- The Common Good
- Family Portrait
- The Developing Brain
- MHC Student Films
- Big Thinkers on Mental Health (coming soon)
- Celebrated Minds (coming soon)
You can spend 10 minutes, an hour or more browsing the videos. They are compelling. For more information or comments, please contact mhc@arcosfilms.com.