Conducting workshops for scout trainees 📮️We reached 1000 workshops in schools ! 🎬️ Following the war we launched a new VR production: Dealing with anxiety in a war situation 📮️ Conducting workshops for supervisors of the Ministry of Education
Interactive Virtual Reality workshops changing the way of coping with mental distress
Openmind 360 gives teenagers the tools to identify adversity in themselves and their friends through a unique experience. In innovative workshops based on an interactive 360 virtual reality application, we teach young people to open up and talk about feelings, hardships, and options for coping and mental resilience.
Our Vision
Eradicate and change the stigma around mental distress. Make knowledge accessible, create empathy and motivate those facing distress to seek help.
1 out of 4 youngsters copes with mental distress
1 out of 8 youngsters has suicidal thoughts
Only 2 out of 10 youngsters who needs mental support will approach psychological treatment
What you'll get from Openmind360 ?
Workshops that allow open discussion and choices
Our innovative workshops bring young people together with the topic of mental distress through the unique tool of virtual reality. Through the choices presented in the VR movie and the possibility of wandering in 360 degrees during the movie – we create a special and meaningful experience that connects the youth to the “heavy” subject of mental distress and enables open dialogue, understanding and choice of action. The workshops are facilitated by certified psychologists who specialize in emotional discussion facilitation.
A program that helps youngsters to cope with mental distress
The “Feeling 360” program is a serie of 6 workshops dealing with mental issues common among youngsters. The subjects of the workshops are depression, anxiety during war time, social anxiety, shaming and loneliness. During the workshops the participants learn how to identify meaningful mental distress in themselves and in their friends. It also teaches how to help their friends in empathic manner and how to develop mental resilience. Each workshop is 90 minutes and all the equipment is provided by Openmind360. The workshops are also adapted for educational teams and for parents. The program is certified by the Ministry of Education since 2018.
Unique movies supervised by educational psychologists
Our movies are produced especially for our workshops describing various situations of adversity. The scripts were developed by professionals and written specifically for teenagers speaking their language. The director created scenes designed for shooting in 360 degrees with a dedicated 360 camera. Very few feature movies have been created in 360 degrees, and thus we are breaking ground in this field as well. We have purchased many dozens of advanced Virtual Reality devices for several workshops in parallel.
Each participant receives his own kit and uses it several times during the workshop in order to have an exciting and meaningful experience.
Innovation dedicated for our workshops
We developed our application to support our workshops. The application connects between the VR headsets and the controlling Tablet by a dedicated WiFi network.
The application has 2 goals: interaction with the viewer and collecting data. During the movie there are several dilema points where the participant is invited to answer questions and chose how the plot will continue. Creating divergent stories from the plot allows the participant to take an active part and influence the course of the plot…
In addition the application has the option of collecting anonymous but essential information about the users selections in real time, allowing us to display and analyze choices and answers. This also allows collecting relevant data for further research and development needs
About Virtual Reality and Empathy
Virtual Reality is an innovative technology that is known as “Empathy Booster”. The viewers are immersed into the VR situation and “getting into the shoes” of the characters. This helps them develop empathy which is so scarce among youngsters. It is a “cool” device that talks to them in their own language and allows them to have open discussion about the “heavy” but also so important subject of mental distress.
When the project starts from personal stories
“OpenMind 360” was founded by 3 partners, each of whom has a close family member who was in mental distress. Out of a sense of obligation to help other youngsters in dealing with mental distress, the project was established as a social business whose purpose is to open a dialogue about emotional distress through innovative technology of virtual reality – and this in order Motivate young people who are facing adversity to seek help.
Our project is unique in that it combines advanced technologies/ education/ and the complex issue of mental distress. We believe that with the help of advanced technology, we can create a more meaningful and effective experience among the youngsters. Our project aims to create a learning experience that will remain in their memory for a long time and will affect the way they operate today and in the rest of their lives.
Evidence based by research
Our VR workshops are accompanied from the beginning by well-known academics from the Schneider Medical Center and the Herzliya Reichman University. In 2018, under their guidance, we conducted a pilot with high school students from 20 schools. In 2019 we conducted a study with dozens of students and the results were impressive.
- 92% reported feeling “complete identification” with the characters in distress in the VR films.
- 91% see a distinct advantage in using VR over D2 films in creating a sense of identification and empathy.
- Over 90% expressed a desire to use the Openmind 360 VR application in their educational settings.
In 2025 we will conduct a study with hundreds of school students in collaboration with the Ministry of Education in Israel and Reichman University. The study aims to test the effectiveness of the Openmind 360 program in terms of increasing the willingness of teenagers to seek help in times of mental distress as well as to refer their friends to professional mental assistance.
The Openmind 360 team
Our Team
Our partners
In the media
Interview on the morning program “Paula and Leon” on channel 12
Interview on the TV show NEXT
OpenMind 360 | Explanatory video
ILTV interview
Questions? More information? Talk to us
- Follow us
- Company address
- P.O. 170 Aviel 37835
- contact phone number
- 054-9909080 | 04-6288734