Who are our stakeholders and what are their motivations?
Mothers (they live and have a more comfortable birthing experience where there autonomous and heard), midwives (increase in recruitment in Sierra Leone), doulas (successful births and awareness to hoe essential they are to birth), healthcare workers (less implicit bias in US, less stigma and more workers in sierra leone) , families (more living mothers), Lehigh University (a successful film that gets them clout), the documentary team (a completed piece that makes an impact).
What cultural phenomena is your film taking into account in Sierra Leone?
FGM and TBAs play a huge role in Sierra Leone living, however we don’t feel it is our place as western filmmakers to critique the patriarchal society. We are focusing on the lives of mothers, not trying to change the way they live.
Include statistics on the prevalence of FGM and TBAs.
What impact campaigns are you basing the film off?
We have used the hunting ground before in terms of showcasing a larger issue by focusing on a handful of subjects and their journey to connecting colleges across the nation to Title IX resources.
How are you preparing to go to Sierra Leone since the trip has been postponed?
Changing the team structure.
Focusing more on preliminary research and isolating topics and subjects of interest as well as geography
Why would you put your time into writing about America for comparison?
Since our target audience is the western world, we want to give them something to relate it back to. Also, there are negative stigmas around Africa in the west and by showing similarities in the issues we face as well as some things Sierra Leone does better we can reshape that perception.
What are your dissemination strategies in both countries?
In Sierra Leone: We are going to promote the film through women’s networks (name the specific network) and screening at health clinics for the short term videos, as well as using radio for promoting the full length film and whatsapp.
In US: We are going to get a deal with a film company and stream it at festivals. We are going to put out instagram ads and release it on youtube as well (for a streaming fee).
What are you doing with the money you make off the film?
Any profit we make is going towards supporting the scholarships of midwifery schools and medical equipment in Sierra Leone, and Doula training in the US.
How are you going to interview the women?
We have been working on developing a contact network in both countries while we have been conducting qualitative interviews this semester. So, we plan on talking to people we have previously spoken to over zoom while in the country and asking if they know anyone who might be interested. This follows more of the social nature of Sierra Leone.
How does a documentary make an impact?
Each of our educational videos follows what is called the creative media impact model. Each video has a compelling story, which prompts awareness, fostering individual action and social change by connecting people with health resources and attracting more health workers. This leads to engagement in the way our audience interacts with our several marketing platforms which we can track through numbers of views.
How is the US crisis related to Sierra Leone? Does it take away from the Sierra Leone story?
Using the US crisis in our project enables us to connect the Western audience to the maternal crisis that is occurring in Sierra Leone. When Western viewers realize that many of the issues that occur there also occur here, they will be more inclined to watch our documentary and read our articles.
How do you hope to expand your team?
By recruiting students from the College of Health to help us with data collection and analysis. This will expand our partnership with the College of Health and make our team more interdisciplinary.
What publications are you targeting?
At the moment, for our article publications, we are targeting Medium and the Huffington Post. However, we are looking to publish in academic journals that target the health of women such as The Journal of Women’s Health Care.
How much is the total cost of production for the finished film?
We have a revenue model that complies the estimated amounts of money required for staffing, travel, and equipment. We will not know the total amount until we go to Sierra Leone this summer.
Are you incentivizing the people you are interviewing?
We are not providing an incentive at this time.
What are your metrics of success for work done in Sierra Leone?
Increase in applications for midwifery school
Increase in healthcare professionals
Increase in birth-control usage
Decrease in teenage pregnancy
Positive qualitative survey responses.
How do you plan to keep in contact with your partnerships in Sierra Leone?
Through our Whatsapp network.
What are some of the exact conditions women are dying from and are you targeting those issues specifically?
Women mostly die from hemorrhage, obstructed labor, unsafe abortion eclampsia, and sepsis.
These causes can be caught, treated, and prevented by disseminating information about medical resources through our videos.
How do you plan on reaching people in Sierra Leone who do not have access to technology?
We have set aside a portion of the budget for Billboards and flyers that explain how to find our videos. We would place the billboards around clinics, markets, and other places where women frequent.
What is your exact plan for showcasing the videos in Sierra Leone?
When we arrive in Sierra Leone, we plan on hosting group screenings of 10-15 women and healthcare providers using a projector at some of our partners schools and clinics. We plan on investing tablets that would allow us to play our videos for women in clinic waiting rooms.
How will you know if the women learned anything from the videos?
Prior to watching our films, women will fill out a baseline survey that is qualitative, determining what they already know about maternal health. These same women will then watch our films and report what they have learned in a follow-up survey.
