2023 Teens & Screens Summit

October 26, 2023

UCLA Meyer and Renee Luskin Conference Center

The invite-only 2023 Teens & Screens Summit gathered storytellers, entertainment leaders, researchers, and teens to collaborate on solutions to address the mental health challenges of today’s adolescents (ages 10-25).

Panels focused on creating content from a research-informed perspective, emphasizing authentically inclusive representation (AIR) and meeting teens and young adults where they are ...on screens. This included both platforms where they gather (e.g. social, gaming, etc.) and topics they care about (e.g. gender identity and expression).

Jamie Azar (CSS Social Impact Manager) and Sheena Brevig (CSS Workshops Director)

CSS Founder, Dr. Yalda Uhls, kicks off the 2023 Teens & Screens Summit

Real Talk: Behind the Screen with Top Creators Panelists- Gohar Khan (Content Creator), Eli Stone (Entrepreneur & Content Creator), Lauren Glaubach (Director, Youtube) and Pierson Wodzynski (Content Creator)

Keynote Speaker, Jerome Foster II, in conversation with Dr. Yalda T. Uhls

CSS Founder Dr. Yalda T. Uhls and Environmental Justice Advocate & Co-Executive Director at Waic Up, Jerome Foster II.

Panelist Zach Gottlieb (Founder of Talk with Zach & YMR Program Teen) for Social Impact: What Happens Next?

Social Impact: What Happens Next? panelists- Sofia Ayesta-Hollstein (YMR Program Teen), Zach Gottlieb (Talk With Zach Founder & YMR Program Teen), Andy Kucer (Senior Program Officer, Spring Point Partners), Natalie Patterson (Director of Training & Programs, BEAM), and Meredith Goldberg-Morse (Director of Social Impact, Showtime and MTV Entertainment Studios)

Panelist Marcos “Kosine” Palacios (Songwriter, Composer, Actor, & Co-Founder, Da Internz) for Moment4Life: Music & Mental Health

Moment4Life: Music and Mental Health Panelists- Dr. Jabari Evans (University of South Carolina & Harvard), Marcos “Kosine” Palacios (Singer, Songwriter, Composer & Co-Founder, Da Internz), Jacob Sartorius (Singer & Social Media Personality), Daniel McCartney (United Talent Agency) and Jasmine Sorgen (YMR Program Teen).

Panelists Lauren Kisilevsky (Executive Vice President, Hello Sunshine) and Mayan Lopez (Actress, Writer & Producer) for Crafing Stories that Connect

Dr. Yalda T. Uhls with Crafting Stories that Connect panelists- Lauren Kisilevsky (Hello Sunshine), Charles Pugliese (Vice President, Disney Branded TV), Angela Harvey (Writer, Producer, Director & Activist), Mayan Lopez (Actress, Writer & Producer), and Dr. Alisha Hines (CSS Director of Research).

Panelist Lynnette Ramirez (President, Bassett Vance Productions) for Game Changers: Shifting Gender Norms in Media

Game Changers: Shifting Gender Norms in Media Panelists- Sheena Brevig (CSS Workshops Director), Sasha Knight (YMR Program Teen & LGBTQIA+ Activist), Adrian Ledda (Head of Inclusive Game Design, Activision Blizzard), Lynnette Ramirez (Basset Vance Productions), and Morgan Stevenson Cooper (Writer & Director)

Panelist Sasha Knight (YMR Program Teen & LGBTQIA+ Activist), for Game Changers: Shifting Gender Norms in Media

Beyond Tropes: Rethinking Foster Care Portrayals Panelists- George Huang (Screenwriting Professor), Joanna Johnson (Writer, Producer & Director), Demontea Thompson (CSS Fellow, Twinspire Co-Founder & Executive Director), and Dr. Tiera Tanksley (CSS Director of Youth & Policy)

Panelists Joanna Johnson (Writer, Producer & Director) and Demontea Thompson (CSS Fellow & Twinspire Co-Founder & Executive Director) for Beyond Tropes: Rethinking Foster Care Portrayals

Gen Z and the Social Shift panelists- Dr. Candice Odgers (Professor of Psychological Sciene, UC Irvine), Tallulah Willis (Artist & Entrepreneur), Raena Saddler (Director of Product, Youth Wellbeing & Equity, Meta), Gael Aitor (Creator & Host, Teenager Therapy Podcast), and Amanda Southworth (Executive Director & CTO, Astra Labs & Faura)

Panelist Tallulah Willis (Artist & Entrepreneur) for the Gen Z and Social Shift

Dr. Yalda T. Uhls with panelists Lauren Glaubach (Director, Youtube), Pierson Wodzynski (Content Creator), Eli Stone (Entrepreneur & Content Creator), and Gohar Khan (Educational Content Creator & Co-Founder, Next Admit) for Real Talk: Behind the Scenes with Top Creators