Changing Minds Deaf series
A six-part NZSL video series co-produced with Deaf creatives that addresses lived experiences of mental distress, support options, and wellbeing tools.
Each film features community members sharing real stories around personal challenges and resilience, translated through embodied language and cultural expression.
"Having resources built by and for the deaf community allows individuals to access culturally appropriate information regarding mindfulness, safe disclosure and building support systems.”
Impact
The six-part series has delivered measurable change within h Deaf and mental health spaces in Aotearoa. It is the first NZSL-led mental health education resource in Aotearoa fully designed by and for Deaf people, filling a long-standing gap in accessible wellbeing materials.
The project embedded Deaf voices into national mental health education, enabling individuals and families to talk about distress, mindfulness, and support networks in a culturally relevant language.
The initiative also trained nine Deaf leaders through the Rākau Roroa (Tall Trees) lived‑experience leadership programme, equipping them with the confidence and tools to champion mental health advocacy within Deaf networks. Participants went on to design peer campaigns, co‑host wellbeing events, and collaborate on Deaf‑led educational content - expanding leadership capacity within the community.
It significantly increased awareness and accessibility of support services for Deaf individuals experiencing distress
Influence
Its approach informed the NZSL Board’s ongoing strategy to tie language access directly to wellbeing outcomes, reinforcing that communication rights are also mental health rights.
This has become a benchmark project for service providers, showing what genuine Deaf-first, co-designed media looks like — created in NZSL rather than translated for it.
Organisations such as Deaf Aotearoa and local DHBs began using the series as a training and awareness tool, while government agencies cited it as an example of best practice in culturally responsive design.
Organisation
Changing Minds is a national, lived-experience-led organisation that champions human rights, mental health, and addiction recovery through community storytelling and advocacy. Every staff and board member draws on personal experience of mental distress, which anchors their approach in empathy and authenticity. Their kaupapa centres on amplifying lived experience so communities can co-create systemic change - from peer networks to public media.
Its core purpose is to raise mental health literacy and strengthen self-advocacy within the Deaf community while promoting inclusion in mainstream services.
The project also aims to normalise mental wellbeing conversations in NZSL spaces, encouraging peer support and self-care as community-strengthening acts rather than signs of weakness.
Purpose
"With these videos we’ve created a one‑stop shop with complete mental health resources, where the Deaf community and deaf people have their own choices on where to go for the resources that fit their needs.”
Context and challenges
Members of the Deaf community in Aotearoa have long faced systemic barriers to accessible mental health support - such as lack of NZSL-interpreted services, misinformation, and stigma that discourages open discussion around distress. Many Deaf individuals describe feeling isolated navigating hearing-led systems that are ill-equipped to provide culturally safe care.
The challenge for Changing Minds was to bridge trust and access, creating mental health resources that would feel genuinely Deaf-led rather than translated from a hearing perspective.
What makes it stand out
The series is distinctive because it is by Deaf, for Deaf - one of the first NZSL-led mental health storytelling initiatives in Aotearoa.
Rather than subtitled translations or interpreted voices, the stories unfold natively in New Zealand Sign Language, capturing gesture, rhythm, and visual-emotional nuance as central to communication.
It blends documentary realism with peer-led education, spanning six short films on topics such as:
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Safe disclosure
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Navigating mental health services
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Building support systems
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Reducing stigma
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Practicing mindfulness
Co-design
The Deaf Series was shaped through collaboration with the Deaf community from the outset. Changing Minds partnered with Tāngata Turi filmmaker Jared Flitcroft (Ngāti Maniapoto) of JPF Films, ensuring that both the director and participants were Deaf and fluent in NZSL.
Eight Deaf contributors shared their stories through co-created scripts and peer conversations. Production decisions such as visual framing, language pacing, and signing style, were guided by Deaf cultural norms. This approach aligns with tikanga Māori-informed co-design principles: working with, not on, communities, and ensuring that lived experience dictates design and delivery.
Why
it works
The Deaf Series works because it is authentic, accessible, and empowering.
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Authenticity: Every visual cue, from facial expression to handshape, communicates emotional truth. Deaf viewers see people like themselves - signing, feeling, and reflecting without mediation.
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Cultural relevance: Using NZSL as the storytelling medium places Deaf culture at the centre, rather than framing it as an accessibility add-on.
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Peer voice and trust: Featuring lived-experience storytellers fosters credibility and reduces stigma more effectively than professional-led outreach.
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Visual design: Collaboration with filmmaker Jared Flitcroft ensured high production value while keeping storytelling organic and community-driven.
As filmmaker Jared noted, “We’ve created a one-stop place where the Deaf community can find mental health resources that fit their world”.