Harmony Biosciences Spotlights Project Sleep’s Hollywood Initiative for Promoting Realistic Sleep Disorder Portrayals in Film and Television

Advocacy collaboration with the Norman Lear Center receives Patients at the Heart Award on World Narcolepsy Day

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., September 22, 2025 - On World Narcolepsy Day 2025, Harmony Biosciences awarded Project Sleep a Patients at the Heart Award for its Hollywood & Sleep Initiative. This collaboration with Hollywood, Health & Society at the University of Southern California's Norman Lear Center promotes medically accurate portrayals of characters with sleep disorders in film and television reflective of real patient experiences.

Harmony Biosciences' Patients at the Heart Awards recognize and provide funding support to community nonprofits advancing creative, patient-centered initiatives addressing unmet needs of people with rare neurological diseases through broad societal and national impact.

"We're honored to receive a Patients at the Heart Award from Harmony Biosciences for our Hollywood & Sleep Initiative especially as we acknowledge World Narcolepsy Day," said Julie Flygare, President and CEO of Project Sleep. "Movies and TV shows too often depict sleep disorders as jokes or ways far removed from reality. And since the majority of the estimated 50 to 70 million Americans affected by chronic sleep conditions are currently undiagnosed, having realistic on-screen portrayals of these conditions is critical. Our collaboration with the Norman Lear Center elevates patients alongside health professionals, and writers and producers to bridge awareness gaps, promote realistic storytelling, and raise greater public understanding and appreciation of these conditions and people living with them."

Earlier this year, in honor of World Sleep Day, Project Sleep and Hollywood, Health & Society hosted an inaugural panel discussion at the Writers Guild of America West. The event brought together patients, health professionals, writers, and producers to discuss accurate portrayals of sleep disorders in entertainment and the work studios are doing to improve representation.

"Popular culture and Hollywood can have immense influence when it comes to shaping how we see all kinds of medical conditions, which makes Project Sleep's work especially important given how misunderstood and underdiagnosed many sleep disorders are," said Cate McCanless, Chief Corporate Affairs Officer at Harmony Biosciences. "We believe that more realistic character portrayals in film and television can foster greater empathy, reduce stigma, and lead to a more compassionate society that better addresses the unmet needs of this patient community and hopefully elevates sleep health as a greater national public health priority."

The Hollywood & Sleep Initiative builds upon Project Sleep's Sleep Disorders in Film & TV Database, which launched in 2021 to track cinematic portrayals of sleep conditions and support future research. Unlike other medical conditions, there is currently no published research addressing media depictions of narcolepsy and other sleep disorders.

To learn more about Project Sleep and the Hollywood & Sleep Initiative, visit: https://project-sleep.com/hollywood-sleep-initiative/.

To learn more about Harmony Biosciences and our external funding initiatives, visit: https://www.harmonybiosciences.com.

About Harmony BiosciencesHarmony Biosciences is a pharmaceutical company dedicated to developing and commercializing innovative therapies for patients with rare neurological diseases who have unmet medical needs. Driven by novel science, visionary thinking, and a commitment to those who feel overlooked, Harmony Biosciences is nurturing a future full of therapeutic possibilities that may enable patients with rare neurological diseases to truly thrive. Established by Paragon Biosciences, LLC, in 2017 and headquartered in Plymouth Meeting, Pa., we believe that when empathy and innovation meet, a better future can begin; a vision evident in the therapeutic innovations we advance, the culture we cultivate, and the community programs we foster. For more information, please visit https://www.harmonybiosciences.com.

Media Contact:Cate McCanless Harmony [email protected]