The Making of Love Games

Executive Summary

• Communications Support for Health is a USAID project focused on strengthening national health communication on HIV/AIDS, Maternal and Reproductive Health, Malaria and Nutrition

• Part of that work includes a 26-part mini-series, Love Games. Love Games is entirely Zambian produced and can be described as:

“The story of a group of interconnected family and friends navigating the tricky waters of love and relationships in the time of HIV.”

• CSH is using a variety of social media to reinforce and collect feedback on the messages being communicated through the show

Safe Love Campaign

• CSH “flagship” HIV prevention campaign• Focus on three key drivers of HIV transmission in Zambia

High rates of multiple and concurrent sexual

partners (MCP)

Low condom use with regular and casual

partners

Low utilization of PMTCT services

How to affect these drivers

Step 1: Understand critical barriers (formative research)

Step 2: Based on barriers, decide what to communicate

Step 3: Determine to whom you need to communicate• Primary Audience: Urban and rural men and women from age

15-49, both in relationships and single• Secondary Audience: Any other opinion influencers including

headmen/traditional leaders, elders, pastors/religious leaders, and teachers

Step 4: Determine HOW to communicate

Radio vs TV• CSH conducted a rapid survey in April 2011 to measure

exposure of campaign at that stage (mostly radio and TV adverts)

• Results: o 84.2% urban audiences and 72.4% rural audiences have access to

radioo 86.8% urban audiences and 60.5% rural audiences have access to

television

• Justified investment in both radio and television

Main channels for Safe Love campaign communication

Mass media:• Life at the Turnoff 26-episode radio

drama, airing on all national and 20 community radio stations in English and 5 local languages. Target audience: 35-49 years, rural

• Love Games 26-episode TV drama series, airing on 2 main national TV stations in English. Target audience: 18-35 years, urban

• TV adverts (17 in all)• Radio adverts (17 in all)• Live Today newspaper inserts 6 bi-

monthly inserts on various topics

Interpersonal:• Safe Love Clubs: 5 civil society

organizations holding small group sessions with men, women, and youth on various aspects of the Safe Love campaign using teaching aides + mass media products for discussion.

• Events: outreach at various national and community events including traditional ceremonies, agricultural fairs, international “day” celebrations, concerts, university programs and rallies

Step 5: Develop communication toolsLove Games: • Used success and evaluation of Club Risky Business as starting

pointo Built on many of the same characterso Went from 13 10-minute episodes to 26 25-minute episodeso Slightly changed perspective from group of men and their women to

a group of women and their men

• Best practices in the field of entertainment education suggest the most critical success factor is to lead with the story/plot/characters. So, Love Games is:

“The story of a group of interconnected family and friends navigating the tricky waters of love and relationships in the time of HIV.”

Love Games: • 18 months in development from release of RFP for creative

vendor to concept/character profiles to scripting to beginning production

• Story line involves intricate sexual networks/MCP, condom use and disuse, PMTCT and lively debate and discussion

• Season 1 depicts many of the choices people are regularly faced with; Season 2 depicts the consequences of those choices

• Approximately 6 months of production • Quality major focus

• Media 365 was hired as producer and established standards for production never before seen in Zambia.

Episode 8 (what we’ll see tonight)

In the middle of Season 1; things are just starting to heat up for our characters:• Carol: engaged to Charlie, struggling with the fact she cheated

on Charlie with her boss, Charlie suspects Carol is lying• Tasheni: Carol’s cousin who just moved back from the UK, just

realized her longtime boyfriend TJ has been cheating on her, developing close relationship with Charlie

• Mimi: wild party girl, has many sexual partners, having an affair with David

• Tamara: suspect her husband is having an affair, being pursued by business client Julius

• Womba: successful lawyer, just started dating younger man Chilufya

Methodology

• Feedback was drawn from the Love Games Facebook page and random walk around interviews.

• The interviews are conducted in purposely selected locations such as stores, markets and other suitable locations.

• Interviewees selected ensuring that the target population, 15-49 year olds, are captured.

CSH is also planning on conducting a second “rapid survey” with a national sample to measure campaign exposure and obtain feedback on products in April and a large impact evaluation of the entire Safe Love campaign in August.

Immediate Reactions

Random Walk Around

• The most viewed channel is ZNBC.

• Of approximately 50 people randomly contacted each week, we’ve seen a steady increase from 30% to 50% having watched the show over the 7 weeks we’ve conducted the interviews

• Commonly perceived message;

o The effects of multiple concurrent partnerships

o Stick to one sexual partners

o HIV/AIDS is real

• This information will be supplemented by the Safe Love rapid survey later this year.

The common themes on Love Games Facebook are that the show is:

• Educative

• Dramatic and entertaining

• Viewers love the show

• Character appreciation (Mimi)

Popularity of “Love Games” on Facebook

Gender and age of “Love Games” Facebook fans

Quotes on Value of Program

“Its really educative and helps people especially the youths”

“Very educative and entertaining @ the same time”

“I love the program. Its educating even us, married women”

More Quotes

“The best soap ever, very entertaining”

“Impressed with the script and the quality. I hope the message is heard”

“The maid has grown wings, ‘laughter’ Wow….Love games indeed…! And the hubby behaves as if nothing happened with the house maid, when his wife arrives…”

Viewers Love the Show

“Whoever came up with Love Games did well because I’m learning a lot. Big up to u! ”

“I love the show….”

Character Appreciation:

“…Mimi you are such a great actor, hope you are not like that in reality”

“What Mimi does to others is exactly others do to her – sexual networks!”

How has Love Games impacted your live and shaped your understanding of HIV?

“Mimi's part as truly changed me... It made me see how wrong depending on a sugar daddy is... & how being materialistic can ruin your future.... I finally gathered the courage to tell off my sugar daddyd & am now happy & free all thanx to Love Games...”

“Well, that show has really changed my life in the sense that i now know my HIV status. I had fear of getting tested but knowing that I have a past prompted me to take a bold step cause there was a possibility that i could have been in a sexual network. After all, it’s my own precious life.”

“I've watched all the 12 episodes so far and I've learned that sticking to one sexual partner and using a condom can be helpful and it has given a true picture of how essential an HIV test can be in one's life.”

“It’s amazing! First I would like to applause the minds behind this programme, it really captures the reality of everyday life. It’s surprising how people don’t take these issues seriously, but I think with entertaining but yet educative programmes like LOVE GAMES, it might just be the eye opener to how much similarities we might have with the characters, so well done hope to see a second season.”

“I have learnt that not all friends are good influencers, and trust alone can’t work in relationships. Also having multiple sexual partners puts you at very high risk to HIV. Always use a condom when having sex and make sure you know your HIV status and for your partner as well.”

Dominant Patterns Emerging

• The majority of people accessing the Facebook page are youths

(18-34 years) and equal gender distribution; which means we are

reaching our target audience

• The show triggers discussions amongst the viewers to discuss healthy relationships

• Healthy relationships are described as those that are characterized by trust, respect, and open communication

Thank you!