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NEXT
EVENT
RECOVERY MOVIE MEETUPS Webinar
YOUTH BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SUMMIT
April 8, 2026
5:30pm ET
Join Recovery Movie Meetups for a special Youth Behavioral Health Summit where we bring together leading experts and filmmakers to explore innovative approaches to addressing substance use and risk behaviors among young people, and the role of storytelling and media in shaping healthier behaviors.
The event will feature a live conversation with the producers of Party Foul—a powerful 24-minute entertainment-education film designed to reduce binge drinking and encourage bystander intervention among college students.
Developed through a human-centered design process with youth from across the United States and grounded in Social Cognitive Theory, the film models realistic social situations and practical harm-reduction strategies.
Created by the public health experts at Sentient Research, Party Foul demonstrates how engaging storytelling can promote safer choices, support peers, and spark meaningful conversations about youth behavioral health.
Following a general discussion with our panelists, there will be a screening of the film.
ABOUT OUR PANELISTS
Claudia Black, PhD
Internationally recognized for her pioneering and cutting-edge work with family systems and addictive disorders, Dr. Claudia Black’s work with children impacted by drug and alcohol addiction in the late 1970s fueled the advancement of the codependency and developmental trauma fields. Dr. Black’s passion to help young adults overcome obstacles and desire to strengthen families continue to form the foundation of the Claudia Black Young Adult Center. Not only is Dr. Black the clinical architect of this groundbreaking treatment program, she is also actively involved with the treatment team, patients, and their families.
Aaron Plant
Aaron Plant is the co-founder and Vice President of Sentient Research. He has worked as a public health researcher and program planner for over 20 years, specializing in entertainment-education, technology, and adolescent health. In his career, Aaron has designed and evaluated numerous effective interventions for clients including CDC, NIH, and HHS. He has published over 30 articles in academic journals on sexual and reproductive health, substance use, adolescent health, and the development and evaluation of social marketing, entertainment-education, and technology programs. He received a bachelor’s degree in interdisciplinary studies (folklore) at UC Berkeley in 1998 and a master’s in public health degree from UCLA in 2005.
Ted Mandell
Ted Mandell is an Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of Film, Television, and Theatre at the University of Notre Dame where he has taught for the past 38 years. Along with courses in film production, Ted co-teaches the popular course "Drunk on Film: The Psychology of Storytelling with Alcohol and Its Effects on Alcohol Consumption", which has been taught to over 1800 undergraduates in the past six years, and was recently featured on the PBS Newshour.
ABOUT THE FILM
Party Foul: A 24-Minute Entertainment-Education Video Intervention to Reduce Binge Drinking and Promote Bystander Behaviors
Party Foul is a 24-minute television-quality entertainment-education video intervention designed to reduce heavy and binge drinking behaviors and promote harm reduction behaviors and bystander behaviors among college students. The intervention models realistic social situations and peer interactions to increase awareness of alcohol-related risks, encourage harm-reduction strategies, and normalize effective bystander action.
Party Foul was co-created using a highly iterative, human-centered design approach with 23 diverse youth from across the United States. Input was also provided from university health educators, student affairs professionals, Greek life staff, and researchers specializing in substance use prevention. This intensive process ensured the storylines, dialogue, and characters reflect authentic college experiences and resonate with diverse student populations.
Party Foul is grounded in Social Cognitive Theory (SCT), which emphasizes learning through observation, self-efficacy, and outcome expectancies. Consistent with SCT, the video uses an entertainment-education (EE) narrative format to model both risky behaviors and corrective actions, enabling viewers to learn from characters’ experiences and observe realistic strategies for safer drinking and effective bystander intervention. This storytelling approach fosters emotional engagement and narrative transportation, encouraging viewers to identify with characters and reducing resistance to health messages.
Key Topics Addressed
Through narrative-driven behavioral modeling, Party Foul addresses:
Risks and consequences of heavy and binge drinking (e.g., academic problems, relationship conflicts, mental health impacts, and increased sexual risk).
Harm-reduction strategies (e.g., limiting or pacing drinks, alternating with non-alcoholic beverages, looking out for friends, seeking professional help).
Bystander behaviors to prevent alcohol-related harm and sexual risk.
PRESENTED BY
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