Joyland (2022, 2 hr 1 min, from Pakistan) is a romantic tragedy written, directed and co-edited by Saim Sadiq. Beyond the plot line, the film shows what happens to “self” when societal roles prevent individuals from realizing identities. As a family drama, Joyland raises the deeper identity problem of self-obliteration when the self isn’t seen by parental eyes. Joyland is an engaging but challenging film, bringing new perspective to issues of “third gender.”

Learning Objectives
As a result of attending this session, participants should be able to:

Identify ways in which patriarchal expectations result in the stifling of characters’ vision for their life and consequently lead to unrealized potential
Apply understanding of the multilayered psychodynamic impact of colonialism and criminalization on the “third gender” community in Pakistan in psychotherapy with their U.S.-based transgender patients and clients
Discuss the developmental cost of “emotional enslavement to a self-object” as presented in Joyland when experienced by patients/clients

Joshua C. Richmond, MPW, is a vested member of the Writers Guild of America West and has written for film and television for over twenty years, writing scripts for Ron Howard, Universal, Disney etc., and has created TV shows for Fox and Disney. Currently he teaches screenwriting and sitcom writing at Cal State Fullerton and is a psychoanalytic studies candidate at the New Center for Psychoanalysis.

Manal Khan, MD, is a pediatric and adult psychiatrist at UCLA. Dr. Khan completed her residency training in general psychiatry at the University of Washington, Seattle, where she served as the chief resident of recruitment and wellness. She then completed her child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship at UCLA and served as the inaugural justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion child psychiatry chief. After completing training, she joined UCLA as faculty and now serves as the Associate Program Director for the child and adolescent psychiatry fellowship.

CE credits.