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Books Authored and Edited by Dr. Joshua L. Cohen
Published work on filmmaking, trauma, resilience, post-traumatic growth, and Film/Video-Based Therapy®.
Your Digital Storytelling Project, LLC
Tell Your Story
Storytelling, editing, and coaching informed by more than two decades of books, research, filmmaking, live events, and emerging-media projects.
A place to begin
Bring a story, a draft, a question, or a creative project. We can clarify what you are making and identify a responsible next step.
A working introduction
Stories can be meaningful and practical at the same time.
I'm Dr. Joshua L. Cohen, an author, editor, and media psychologist. I am the author and editor of three books exploring filmmaking, trauma, post-traumatic growth, and Film/Video-Based Therapy®. Through Your Digital Storytelling Project, I help storytellers, filmmakers, therapists, educators, peer specialists, and other professionals develop meaningful stories, strengthen creative projects, and use technology responsibly. My coaching can help you clarify your story, revise your ideas, develop a project, and determine the practical next steps.
Books
Books Authored and Edited by Dr. Joshua L. Cohen
My published work examines how filmmaking and digital storytelling can help people explore experience, trauma, resilience, and post-traumatic growth.
Edited · Routledge 2026
Post-Traumatic Growth and Film/Video-Based Therapy: Cultivating Resilience Through Storytelling and Media Psychology
Edited by Joshua L. Cohen. Routledge
Edited · Routledge 2022
Film/Video-Based Therapy and Trauma: Research and Practice
Edited by Joshua L. Cohen.
Co-edited · Routledge 2015
Video and Filmmaking as Psychotherapy: Research and Practice
Co-edited with J. Lauren Johnson & Penelope P. Orr.
Selected work
Projects, research, and places to explore
Each path opens a different part of the work—from books and research to live events, advocacy, and technology.
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Film/Video-Based Therapy®
Explore the history, research, and professional practice of Film/Video-Based Therapy®, a framework involving filmmaking and video within appropriately guided therapeutic and educational contexts.
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Research: Trauma & Post-Traumatic Growth
Research and educational work exploring trauma, resilience, post-traumatic growth, and the ways stories can help people examine experience.
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Live Events, Teaching & Presentations
A record of live events, teaching, presentations, and conversations across Los Angeles and virtual settings.
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Virtual Reality, AI & Emerging Technology
Projects exploring virtual reality, artificial intelligence, immersive storytelling, virtual galleries, media psychology, and other emerging creative technologies.
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LaughMD
LaughMD is a video app designed for hospitals and recovery treatment facilities, playing selected, safe comedy videos for patients and healthcare providers on the premise that humor supports stress relief and wellbeing. Dr. Joshua L. Cohen has served as a media psychologist and consultant for LaughMD since June 2023.
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Advocacy & Therapeutic Advertising®
Advocacy, mental-health storytelling, and educational projects developed through Therapeutic Advertising®, Film/Video-Based Therapy®, and related community and professional collaborations.
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Technology Advocacy for Therapists
Make unfamiliar technology understandable and support informed professional decisions about tools, projects, and collaborators.
Coaching
Tell Your Story coaching
Develop, revise, and share a meaningful story.
- Clarify the story they want to tell
- Strengthen structure, meaning, and presentation
- Develop writing, filmmaking, or digital-storytelling projects
- Explore the creative use of film, video, VR, or AI
- Think through sensitive subject matter and professional boundaries
- Identify appropriate collaborators and next steps
- Receive editorial and project-development guidance
This is coaching, education, and creative consultation—not psychotherapy.
Tell Your Story is a Skool community for developing, revising, and sharing meaningful stories. It is an author-led space for talking about stories and working on your own at the level that feels comfortable to you.
- Discuss writing, film, and personal or fictional stories
- Share an idea, draft, or question
- Explore reflective exercises and revision
- Use optional AI-assisted creative tools when useful
- Participate without technical experience
- Learn in a storytelling community—not psychotherapy
For therapists and clinical professionals
Technology advocacy for therapists
Make unfamiliar technology understandable.
- Understand what unfamiliar tools can and cannot do.
- Ask better questions when evaluating technology and vendors.
- Explore how video, VR, AI, and digital storytelling might fit a project.
- Think through professional boundaries and responsible use.
- Identify appropriate creative, clinical, and technical collaborators.
You remain the expert in your clinical practice. My role is to make the technology understandable and help you make informed professional decisions.
A clear boundary
The boundary matters.
Where is the boundary between storytelling and therapy?
When should a licensed professional become involved?
How can you approach mental-health themes responsibly?
What is an appropriate use of video, VR, or AI for your project?
Start with the next step
You don't have to develop the story alone.
Coaching, editing, education, technology advocacy, and community activities are educational, creative, and consultative services. They are not psychotherapy, legal advice, or substitutes for services from an appropriately licensed professional.