LGBT TV/film consultant

TV, Film and Media Consulting Services on Gay Men, LGBT Issues, and HIV/AIDS

Ken Howard, LCSW, CST, founder of GayTherapyLA.com and an AASECT-Certified Sex Therapist, is available to consult with producers and writers of television shows and films about gay male issues, LGBT, diversity, bullying, child development, trauma, phase-of-life, relationships, cultural issues, HIV/AIDS, psychiatric disorders, and other themes that might be featured in your project.

Maybe you are a screenwriter, television staff writer, show runner, or studio/network executive in development. You have an interest or assignment in writing a project that involves gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender characters, and you want authentic, compelling, interesting, captivating characters. Maybe you have strong ideas on your story, plot, and characters, but they need some additional fine-tuning from someone with long-time expertise in this population. Maybe your story or project depicts gay relationships, and you want authenticity about gay relationship dynamics, dialogue, cultural, and social aspects. Or, maybe it’s some combination of these, and you want to find a consultant you can trust, who has both familiarity with the entertainment industry and with these subject matters, but you don’t want “just anyone”; you want a seasoned professional who can also discuss realistic story and character dynamics based on countless real-life examples.

At GayTherapyLA, our staff clinicians have expertise and experience in all of these areas, and more. We can consult with you to take your project to the next level of authenticity, meaning, and compelling value. Often, even a relatively brief consultation can help you spot “trouble spots” and make your project resonate with audiences with more nuances rooted in real-life experience of these specialized populations. Other times, ongoing or more in-depth consultation helps guide the life of your project – from outline, to writing, to production.

A creative team, while full of talented people, can only do so much. None of us can be something we’re not, or get experience and perspective in all walks of life. We help you “fill in the gaps” because we’ve walked the walk, talked the talk, and lived the lives that you might be depicting in your project. There are issues in culture, relationships, developmental issues, language, dress, habits, behaviors, “world views”, and perspectives that need to be taken into consideration for many different variations on the LGBT community. These subtleties and variations can include gender identity, race, national origin, age, spirituality, body size/type, intellect, disability status, socio-economic status, level of acculturation, level of “out-ness”, and social “circle”, and more.

You might have more questions…

But can’t any gay, lesbian, LGBT person answer questions for my project? Why would I need to hire you?

Because while you might have friends, colleagues, or acquaintances who represent the LGBT community, they don’t have the background as psychotherapists that our staff does. There are issues in child development, adult development and phases-of-life, and a broader perspective of knowing thousands of representatives from the LGBT community (ourselves, friends, family, and a long history of working with LGBT (particularly gay male) clients) that we know and can share as consultants with you.

How can I trust that you won’t steal my ideas? This is all proprietary information with myself, production company, network, or studio.

When we perform consulting services, those conversations are confidential and privileged just like psychotherapy sessions are. We do not disclose any aspect of the content of your material. We do not even disclose that you are our clients. Your work, your intellectual property, remains confidential at any stage of project development. We sign any required non-disclosure agreements your production requires, but your confidentiality is assured in all cases.

Consulting is expensive. My production budget is not that big. How can I justify this cost?

Consulting is expensive, but not relative to the access to the combined decades of expertise that you get in working with our staff. There is information and “perspective” that we can give to you for your project that you simply cannot get anywhere else, as most LGBT-identified psychotherapists do not provide consulting services, or do not provide the level of specialization and breadth/depth of consulting information that we offer. It is also “expensive” to have your story or project lack credibility and verisimilitude that will lead to less impact on audiences and “read” inauthentic. When your story, plot, and characters are rooted in real-life examples and perspectives provided by our consultants, you create a more compelling (and valuable/popular) and critically/commercially successful project that “recoups” your investment.

Qualitfication

With our staff’s combined experience, especially Ken Howard, LCSW, CST’s 29-year career specializing in gay men’s mental health and relationships, we have provided dozens of entertainment professionals with support to develop highly-successful projects. The clients’ right to confidentiality prevents enumerating these, but after over two decades working with professionals from the Los Angeles entertainment industry, material from our consulting has been well-represented in many well-known television shows, commercial films, educational films, and multimedia projects, as well as avenues of popular social media. Ken Howard, LCSW is also an Adjunct Associate Professor with the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, where he teaches advanced courses in evidence-based psychotherapy models, LGBT Psycho-Social-Political Issues, and Couples Therapy. With his combined local Los Angeles production consulting work, and academic/scholarly work, in addition to his personal perspective as a gay man who has lived with HIV/AIDS for over 30 years, Ken is uniquely qualified to provide consulting services on a variety of projects.

Next Steps

If you’re ready to take your project to the next level, contact us about your particular needs. Consulting services can be in-person at our offices, your offices, home, or via phone, email, or Skype consultation. On a limited basis, on-location, on-set coaching and consulting is also available for all production professionals (writers, actors, designers).

Testimonials

“Ken is a consummate professional, combining the best in common sense, practical business coaching, and a solid grounding in evidence-based psychotherapy. There are few of his ilk. I have become a better and more secure manager of my own life with his help. I recommend him to friends, particularly gay professionals who seek improved personal and interpersonal skills and business acumen. Ken wears both hats with considerable skill and warmth.”

“Ken is bright and motivated, and a real professional. He has build a great reputation and practice through community involvement and smart marketing, but most of all through the high quality of service that he provides.”

“I came to Ken because I had suddenly and unexpectedly lost my partner, John, to a massive heart attack. John had been my soulmate and the great love of my life. My grief was overwhelming and really was stopping me from living a life. Ken worked with me to find ways to both deal with my grief and to honor my late partner as well. He is very pragmatic and made some amazing statements to me that made everything crystal clear. Ken helped me in small steps to regain control of my life.”

“A Therapist for Everybody, Plus: Ken is a well-trained, caring, and smart therapist with a practice serving mostly professional gay men. He has provided solid, goal-centered psychotherapy (he’d call it cognitive or something, I suppose) – and is not afraid to include some business coaching in the mix. I’d recommend Ken to anyone wrestling with personal, psychological issues and the stress of running a business. This guy is good at what he does; he’s not cheap by any means, but what good shrink is? Like a lot of people, I had to shop around. I’m sticking with Ken.”

“Ken is a consummate professional who takes great pride in what he does. He is an expert in his field who, through his writings and seminars, has helped people with a wide variety of issues pertaining to life enrichment and achieving self actualization. He stays abreast of the latest industry topics and uses the tools of his trade with master precision.”

“If you are looking for a smart, intuitive, level-headed and kind therapist, then you have struck gold with Ken Howard. In a relaxed way, he gets to the heart of the matter and helps people live extraordinary lives. Whether it is a relationship that is struggling or a work or home difficulty, Ken can help you see through the fog and get to a place where you are happier and healthier. Be glad you found him.”

Ken Howard, LCSW, is licensed psychotherapist in California (Licensed Clinical Social Worker #LCS18290) and life/career/relationship coach who has specialized in therapy for gay men (individuals and gay male couples) and LGBT affirmative therapy for over 26 years. He helps many gay men (and others) resolve the issues that undermine your quality of life, and helps you to thrive. He is openly gay and HIV-positive (28 years), and specializes in helping gay men overcome barriers, setbacks, and losses in life.

For help improving your personal or professional life, consider sessions with Ken for counseling, coaching, or therapy sessions, at his office in Los Angeles/West Hollywood (near Beverly Center mall), or via phone or webcam, from anywhere in the world. Call/text 310-339-5778 or email Ken@GayTherapyLA.com for more information, to schedule an appointment, or for a free 15-minute consultation.

Get the help you need and deserve.

See how I can help. Call/Text (310) 339-5778 to schedule a no-charge, 15-minute phone consultation, or click on button below to complete contact form.