Maternal health shorts

Three excellent short films on maternal health and childbirth

The Physiology of Childbirth 

Emma Lazenby (5 mins)

An animated film that demonstrates the complex yet critical interaction of hormones and mechanics during labour, birth and the postnatal period, and the potential impact this has on the outcome and experience.

Across The Mountains 

Camilla Turner (18 mins)

Highlighting the importance of local health solutions through the compelling story of a mother who is in danger of losing her new-born baby in Somaliland. The film follows frontline health workers in Borama, Somaliland who have huge mountains to climb, both literally and figuratively, to save their patients. 

Birth Shock

Everdien Wood (30 mins)

Highlighting the experiences of birth trauma from the viewpoint of both parents and birth workers. The film illustrates the positive effects of group art elicitation in offering reflection, validation, awareness and understanding connected to a woman's sense of self and wellbeing. It advocates for increased quality of engagement between mothers and health professionals, and shows the importance of the right of women to decide over the way they give birth.