5th Session of the ACTIVA-TE Film Festival
The Alliance for Health and medicusmundi held on Friday, September 16th, 2022, at 10:00 am, the 5th Session of the ACTIVA-TE Film Festival on the “The main challenges in the construction of Positive Masculinities in Mozambiqueʼ, at the Pedagogical University of Maputo (UPM).
The session was held with the aim of contributing to the sensitization and awareness of the arts sector on activism and the right to health, and to bring to consciousness the important role that the arts play in the context of health and human rights.
In the session, it was projected the film ʽʽINTERVALOʼʼ, directed by Nelson Mabuie, followed by a debate panel with the participation of the film's director himself, and also Eunice Margarido, project manager on Rede Hopem pela Mudança, and Mariamo Mabuie, a finalist student of Psychology and the main actress of this film.
ʽʽINTERVALOʼʼ runs around Mariamo, a 5th class student, who wakes up one morning and could not assume that her school day was completely shaken. The most restless student in the class could not get up from the chair due to her menarche.
This industry has a great ability to raise awareness, raise awareness, and influence attitudes.
Nelson Mabuie said the motivation to make this film arises due to the important role for him that the audiovisual industry should perform in the formation of healthy masculinities, as this industry has a great ability to raise awareness, raise awareness, and influence attitudes.
Sanitary institutions must be prepared to involve men more in the health process.
At the time, Dr. Eunice Margarido, project manager of Rede Hopem, mentioned that to talk about positive masculinities, it is important to mention that these are the opposite of toxic masculinities, understood as the social perception of what it is to be a man, which determines specific behaviours in this way that must be adopted by men.
Still, in his intervention, Eunice Margarido added that one of the ways in which positive masculinities manifest is through male engagement in health facilities, and for this, it is necessary that sanitary institutions must be prepared to involve men more in the health process, i.e., they need to create policies to ensure men's engagement in maternity hospitals to have a more favourable welcome to man.
The process of deconstructing toxic masculinities and building positives would also start by working with the media, schools, universities, and communities to reach various audiences.
In turn, Mariamo Mabuie, a finalist student of psychology and actress, called on students to use art as an instrument for social transformation.
Finally, the students and teachers at the session welcomed the initiative and mentioned the importance of discussing these issues at the Academy, as it is an open space to break social paradigms and redouble efforts to achieve various sectors through the generated dynamics.
It should be noted that this film show is inserted in the "Activa-te" Campaign, which was launched last February by the Alliance for Health, to defend the right to health in Mozambique, in the areas of the right to health, Obstetric violence, Improvement of services to women victims of VBG, Rights and Duties of the patient, Sexual Diversities and Positive Masculinities, Nutrition and Community Health, focusing on obtaining positive effects for the strengthening of the National Health System.
This activity took place with the financial support of the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and other co-financers.