Advice from an Aunt

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By Idrissa Ouédraogo, Burkina Faso, based on an original idea by Aram Dieye, aged 16, from St. Louis, Senegal

Nina is about to go meet up with her boyfriend, Adama. Nina's aunt, sensing that it might be a good time to talk with her niece about men and their predatory instincts, provides some matter-of-fact advice.

• length: 2 minutes 26 seconds
• date: 2000
• shot in: Burkina Faso
• currently available in: American Sign Language, Dioula, English, Fon, French, Hausa, Igbo, Kinyarwanda, Kiswahili, Lingala, Mina, Mooré, Portuguese, Pulaar, Twi, Wolof, and Yoruba.

Please click here to view and download photos from the shoot of the film Advice from an Aunt.

Topics for discussion
(See also complete Users' Guide)

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Key topics for discussion:

• Talking to young people about sexuality and HIV/AIDS: how to go about it

• What kind of advice to provide a young person when it comes to sexuality and HIV/AIDS

• Girls and women in our society: are they "objects"?

• Factors that can influence a young person's thinking on sexuality and HIV/AIDS
  

Discussion topic 1:
Talking to young people about sexuality and HIV/AIDS: how to go about it

IN THE FILM: What do you suppose motivated Nina's aunt to talk with her niece right then?

IN REAL LIFE: Parents and other relatives often say that it isn't easy knowing how to start a discussion on sexuality and HIV/AIDS with a young person. Do you have any creative ideas?

One idea is to watch a relevant film or TV show with the young person and then discuss the content of that film. In that way, you can address important issues without giving the young person the feeling that you are invading their privacy.

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Discussion topic 2:
What kind of advice to provide when it comes to sexuality and HIV/AIDS

IN THE FILM: What specific advice does the aunt provide Nina? What do you think about that advice?

IN REAL LIFE: In your opinion, what is the single most important bit of advice that a parent could give a young child or a teenager on sexuality and HIV/AIDS?

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Discussion topic 3:
Girls and women in our society: are they "objects"?

IN THE FILM: What does the aunt mean when she tells Nina: "You're not an object"?

IN REAL LIFE: In our society, are girls/women ever considered to be "objects"? If so, what kind of link might there be between that attitude and the spread of HIV in our community?

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Discussion topic 4:
Factors that can influence a young person's thinking on sexuality and HIV/AIDS

IN THE FILM: At the end of the discussion with her aunt, when Nina gets up to go, do you think that the aunt's words have influenced her thinking? What do you think will happen next?

IN REAL LIFE: In addition to an older relative's advice, what other sources of information might influence a young person's thinking on sexuality and HIV/AIDS?

Other important sources of information might include: television and other media sources, the young person's friends and peer group in general, the example of older siblings, teachers, health workers, religion….

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