Today we’d like to introduce you to Ari Mostov.
Hi Ari, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m a film school dropout, having attended USC School of Cinematic Arts for two years before working on my first TV show as an associate producer. I spent 10+ years in Hollywood crafting stories for TV, films and games and I was lucky enough to work on the documentary film The Hunting Ground which was nominated for an Academy Award in 2016. The film chronicled the Title IX movement, where survivors of sexual violence on college campuses fought to change policy and culture. The film was endorsed by the White House and had a huge social impact campaign. The film even influenced national legislation. But most importantly, it changed people’s minds and behaviors around sexual violence.
After witnessing what one great documentary film did for sexual violence, I knew I had to use storytelling for something just as complex and misunderstood — healthcare. I’m super fortunate that I grew up with a “doctor in my pocket”. My dad is a doctor, and I always had an easy time navigating healthcare since he was by my side advocating for me and explaining the medicine to me. I didn’t realize until I aged out of our family insurance how lucky I was and that no one else experienced healthcare the way I did. I decided in 2017 to bring Hollywood to healthcare, launching my company WellPlay. I work with healthcare organizations to create a new narrative for health and also produce entertainment that improves health outcomes. I am committed to scaling healing through entertainment.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I started this journey after getting fired from a job I really enjoyed. What seemed to be the most devastating moment of my career was the catalyst I needed to jump full-time into entrepreneurship. Since then, I have worked with the most incredible people, learned more about myself and my ability to persevere and pivot, while developing a craft that I am sincerely proud of. Through the ups and downs of starting my own business, I have had to dive deep into my own values and desires, sorting through what I thought success looked like and defining fulfillment on my own terms.
I started working in healthcare thinking I was a complete outsider. But my unusual perspective as an entertainment producer actually made me more valuable than if I was a healthcare professional. Clinicians, designers, researchers and administers alike have all shared how much they love my perspective and approach to healthcare. Plus, bringing a fresh set of eyes to a complex, fraught system like healthcare can be just the right thing we need.
One of the biggest challenges was learning how to transform my thoughts and ideas into services that healthcare organizations actually wanted. I started my business simply by blogging my thoughts on entertainment and healthcare, but I soon learned that people wanted more. Developing workshops, an online course and my signature narrative design sprint is what allowed me to build a thriving business. There has been a lot of trial and error, but I am deeply grateful for the lessons learned and progress made.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
WellPlay brings the best of Hollywood to healthcare, using our entertainment expertise to create a healthcare experience everyone wants to be a part of. We’ve successfully used narrative strategy to change culture, attitudes, behavior and policy; and we’re just getting started.
Narrative strategy is a participatory design process that crafts an empowering narrative for stakeholders; mobilizing them for action and bringing everyone along a shared journey for desired outcomes. We work with healthcare organizations across the ecosystem when they need to navigate disruption, unlocking the power of storytelling for better products, policies and experiences. WellPlay designs narrative frameworks for the future, helping industry leaders create fan-worthy solutions.
We offer:
* Narrative design sprints that mobilize organizations towards a desired future.
* Workshops that introduce teams to narrative design and entertainment for healthcare.
* Online courses for individuals seeking to utilize storytelling for healthcare to improve engagement and outcomes.
* And strategic advisory, helping innovators build the future of healthcare.
Some of our selected engagements include:
– Trade Association narrative strategy for KOLs (Key Opinion Leaders)
– Digital health policy design for Medical Affairs
– QA(Quality Assurance) cross-industry engagement and alignment of stakeholders for industry standardization
– Digital health app user engagement and content design
– University Research Hospital storytelling and design training for clinician-entrepreneurs
– Strategic advisory for corporate venture arms
– Corporate acquisition: org and product alignment
– Pharma DTC (direct-to-consumer) content strategy
WellPlay is committed to scaling healing. Beyond narrative strategy, we produce health entertainment. We believe that entertainment can improve health outcomes, with a focus on story-driven behavior change. We produced the award-winning mobile game Virus Hunters which was designed to increase hygiene behaviors in players. We have more fun projects in development and can’t wait for healthcare to be as easy as watching your favorite Netflix show.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I had the pleasure of performing onstage with Lady Gaga at the 2016 Oscars. I was one of 50 survivors on stage with her for her performance of the Oscar-nominated song “Till it Happens to You” from the film The Hunting Ground. Not only did I perform on stage but I worked on the film and its corresponding social impact campaign, It’s On Us. I saw firsthand the power of storytelling to change attitudes, behaviors, culture and policy.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.wellplay.world
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ari-mostov/
- Other: https://arimostov.medium.com/
