When American documentarian Kristine Stolakis set out to make her debut feature film, she knew she wanted to shine a light on the “ex-gay” movement, which consists of those that believe a person’s gender identity or sexual orientation can be changed. .

“I went from someone who was in a lot of pain, trying to make sense of what has happened to a family member, to a filmmaker who felt very determined to make a film when I discovered that the vast majority of conversion therapy organizations are actually run by LGBTQ individuals themselves, who claim that they, themselves, have changed and that they know how to teach others how to do the same,” Stolakis told NBC News.

Armed with a production team comprised of predominantly LGBTQ individuals — many of whom grew up in the evangelical church, survived conversion therapy or both — Stolakis sought to “ground the film in the undeniable truth that this movement, no matter the good intentions or reason for getting involved that any leader has, causes tremendous harm for people.”.

"...this really is a movement of hurt people hurting other people, of what internalized homophobia and transphobia looks like when it is wielded outward.".

“Something my team and I talked about a lot in making this film is, this really is a movement of hurt people hurting other people, of what internalized homophobia and transphobia looks like when it is wielded outward,” said Stolakis, whose other directorial credits include “The Typist” and “Where We Stand.” “That was something we talked about so much in the crafting of this film, and that wasn’t to explain away people’s actions or to excuse their actions.

While many former leaders have renounced and spoken out against the “pray the gay away” movement, Stolakis said “the larger culture of homophobia and transphobia,” particularly in religious communities, has allowed the movement to continue with younger leaders, even with the dissolution of Exodus International in 2013 and the legalization of same-sex marriage in the U.S.

“The vast majority of conversion therapy actually looks more like talk therapy and often happens with either a licensed counselor, or more often with a spiritual or religious leader that acts as a pseudo-counselor,” Stolakis said.

This misconception, she continued, “makes it so that people who are practicing conversion therapy don’t even realize that they’re practicing it.”.

“Or more insidiously, people who are practicing conversion therapy use that stereotype to say, ‘That’s not what we’re doing.

In order to contextualize the lingering effects of conversion therapy on younger generations, Stolakis and her team felt that it was imperative to include two contrasting voices, including one that directly contradicted their own views on the subject.

“I was forthright about the fact that I had a family member that went through this, and that was something that was professed out loud in my interviews with former leaders and the survivor of conversion therapy in our film

Having witnessed the harmful effect that conversion therapy has had on her own family, Stolakis’ initial research also helped her to understand her uncle’s lifelong struggles with depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, addiction and suicidal ideations, which are “all very common for people that go through something like this,” she said

With “Pray Away” set to debut in more than 190 countries on Netflix this week, Stolakis wants to make one thing clear to every prospective viewer: The “ex-gay” movement was never led by just “a couple of bad apples.”

“As long as that larger culture of homophobia and transphobia exists — be it in our churches, any religious community, our political sphere or our culture — some version of conversion therapy and the ex-LGBTQ movement will continue,” she explained