Advisory Committee
Claudia Black, Ph.D.
Clinical Architect, The Claudia Black Young Adult Center at The Meadows
Dr. Mark Rapaport
Founding CEO, Emeritus, Huntsman Mental Health Institute
Carlo DiClemente, PhD, ABPP
Creator of the Transtheoretical Model of Change (TMM)
Dr. Joe Gerstein, MD, FACP
Harvard Medical School
Co-Founder of SMART Recovery
John De Miranda, Ed.M
Former Executive Director, NAAD CEO, Peninsula Health Concepts
A. Tom Horvath, PhD, ABPP
Co-Founder and former President, SMART Recovery USA
David Best
Founding member College of Lived Experience Recovery Organizations & Inclusive Recovery Cities movement
Molly Magill, PhD
Associate Professor, Brown University School of Public Health
Dr. Brandi Jordan, Ph.D.
Chief Operating Officer, Pinnacle Health Group Network
John F. Kelly, PhD, ABPP
Elizabeth R. Spallin Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School
Cynthia Moreno Tuohy
Former Executive Director of NAADAC - Vice President, Wisdom Traditions Counseling Services, LLC
Dr. Judith Landau, MD
Co-Founder of the International Recovery Institute
Rev. Jan Brown
Founding Executive Director SpiritWorks Foundation
Dr. Micah Krepansky
Chief Medical Officer, Mental Health at WakeMed
J. Gregory Hobelmann, M.D., M.P.H.
Co-CEO, President
ASHLEY ADDICTION TREATMENT
"I am thrilled with the fun, innovative, and effective Recovery Movie Meet-Ups Program. It immediately increases client engagement, which ultimately improves outcomes."
Claudia Black, Ph.D.
Clinical Architect, The Claudia Black Young Adult Center at The Meadows
Author, Speaker, Activist, Multiple-Award Recipient
"We need to adapt our therapy processes for the young person and that means less traditional talking therapy and more experiential work. Viewing other people’s story via a movie creates enough of a distance, offering safety to let go of defenses to share more honestly..."
Mark Hyman Rapaport MD
Founding CEO, Emeritus, Huntsman Mental Health Institute; Former Chair at Emory, Cedars-Sinai, and UCLA
"Recovery Movie Meetup is an important new intervention that is complementary to traditional therapies because it employs carefully evaluated popular films to facilitate growth through discussion of the feelings and behaviors engendered by these stories."
Gabor Maté
NY Times Bestselling Author
IN THE REALM OF HUNGRY GHOSTS
"This is a rare morsel of inside knowledge, from one who knows, about a topic that runs like an underground theme through many films, but only recently has become a subject of public acknowledgement..."
Carlo DiClemente, PhD, ABPP
Emeritus Professor of Psychology -UMBC
Creator of the Transtheoretical Model of Change (TMM)
“Recovery Movie Meetups provides an innovative way to engage and challenge patients' thinking and promote the self exploration and reevaluation needed for change.”
John F. Kelly, PhD, ABPP
Elizabeth R. Spallin Professor of Psychiatry
Harvard Medical School
“I love this idea and I’m happy to support it.”
Ben Affleck
Oscar-Winning Producer, Director, Writer
ARGO, THE WAY BACK
"I think movies can definitely help people in their recovery. What a great idea."
Sigourney Weaver
Academy Award Nominated Actress
AVATAR I & II, ALIEN I & II
"I come from a family with a history of addiction and I'm glad that my film is included in this program and is a source of encouragement and support for everyone working hard to recover successfully."
Susannah Grant
Oscar-Nominated Writer
ERIN BROKOVICH, 28 DAYS
"I didn't write 28 DAYS to become an inspiration to the recovery community per se, but I'm thrilled that it is. How great that this program is using films like mine to help people heal."
A. Tom Horvath, PhD, ABPP
President, Practical Recovery
Founder, SMART Recovery
"This program is a great tool to help residential or outpatient treatment centers, community centers, and sober homes create new high impact mutual support meetings that could really become a turning point for people."
Cynthia Moreno Tuohy, Dr. HHL, BSW, NCAC II, SUDP
Former Executive Director of NAADAC, the Association for Addiction Professionals
"People of all ages relate to movies - movies tell a story in a manner that is not as confrontative as therapy or talk-therapy may come across. Movies can be an enhancement to recovery and add to the process of traditional therapies."
Dr. Judith Landau, MD, DPM, LMFT, CFLE
Founder, International Recovery Institute
"Movies have always been one of my passions, and I'm delighted to join the RECOVERY MOVIE MEET-UPs Advisory Committee because I truly believe there is an important place for movies as inspiration for recovery."
ABOUT RECOVERY MOVIE MEETUPS
Where Hollywood Storytelling Meets Evidence-Based Recovery
At Recovery Movie Meetups, we believe in the transformative power of movie storytelling. We bridge the gap between entertainment and healing by utilizing movies viewed in groups to explore the complexities of addiction, recovery, and mental health.
By curating a selection of powerful Hollywood films, we create a safe, engaging environment where stories on the screen spark breakthroughs in real life. Our mission is to help you turn our winning programs into a catalyst for growth, generating profound teachable moments within mutual support meetings at your facilities.
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Our Approach: More Than Just a Movie
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Your clients won’t just watch movies; you will help them analyze them through a therapeutic lens. The meetings leverage the emotional impact of cinema to illustrate complex psychological concepts, making them easier to understand and apply to daily life.
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Your discussions will be grounded in established evidence-based treatment modalities, seamlessly integrating them into accessible, peer-supported conversations.
The Framework
Your clients will analyze character arcs and plot points using principles from leading therapeutic models:
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Motivational Interviewing (MI): Your clients will explore characters' ambivalence toward change and identify their internal motivations, helping participants reflect on their own readiness for recovery.
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Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy (REBT): Your clients will identify the irrational beliefs held by protagonists and discuss how disputing those beliefs leads to emotional well-being.
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Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT): Your clients will pinpoint cognitive distortions and negative thought patterns on screen, allowing group members to recognize similar patterns in their own thinking.
Why Cinema Therapy Works
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Stories bypass a person’s natural defenses. When your clients watch a character struggle with addiction or mental health challenges on screen, they can view the situation objectively before applying the lesson subjectively.
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Recovery Movie Meetups creates a dynamic feedback loop where participants can:
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Identify with the characters' struggles and triumphs.
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Process emotions in a safe, third-party context.
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Practice new coping strategies derived from the film's resolution.
Reach out via phone or email and speak with one of our community engagement specialists
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