To mark International Women’s Day, Mantle is proud to release its next Manage What Matters podcast featuring Jennifer Cummins as our special guest.
In a year where we’ve seen large swathes of the economy decimated by the COVID-19 pandemic, from the entertainment industry right through to localised layoffs that have exacerbated our endemic mental health crisis, you could be forgiven for thinking our next guest’s entire workings suffered – but you would be wrong. Jennifer Cummins is the Principle of Heiress Films, a production company that specialises in factual programs that strive to tell personal stories on the big stage. Cummins’ journey has taken her all over the world, working in France, the UK and Australia. Jennifer is now focusing her efforts at home on an issue very close to her heart, men’s mental health.
This latest project, both a TV series and campaign titled ‘Man Up’, aims to tackle the thorny issue of male suicide through reconceptualising what it means to be a man in the 21stcentury. Far from just making documentaries, Cummins is a powerful voice in the realm of men’s mental health and has been promoting an increase in awareness and action on this under-appreciated topic. With two young sons, and years of experience in advocacy, Cummins is quick to point out the changing mindsets between generations, and the risk this chasm poses for those stuck in ‘the old way’. Encouragingly, Cummins tells Suze Jones from Mantle that boys coming of age this century are much more likely to seek out help and/or counselling without fear of judgement, compared to their fathers’ generation. Always one to be measured in her remarks and work, Cummins provides Mantle with several insightful pearls of wisdom.
