Animation in Drugs Education

"Drugs Hurt" by Caught In The Act and Beds County Council

In 2006, Andi Whitwham at Bedfordshire County Council commissioned Caught In The Act to make a drugs education film based on DRUGS HURT, Bedfordshire's resource targeted at vulnerable young people in the region. The resource has been developed to link first aid knowledge to an understanding of the potential short-term impact of drug use.

Having identified an animator (Kate Sullivan) and sound designer (Paul Dodgson), Caught In The Act wrote and produced SERIOUS BLAZIN'. See it on You Tube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5CcU9HHXNc

Animation is a great way forward for alcohol and drugs education. Young people are viewers of great-looking TV, films and electronic games. The quality of the graphics with which they interact is extremely high. There are many filmed drugs education videos that date quickly and are produced very cheaply. Young people are distinctly unimpressed by the look of these resources and struggle to engage with the content. By presenting funny and contemporary animated images matched with a sharp and accurate script, we can guarantee that this will be a drugs education project that will engage its highly critical audience. And, as every classroom has an interactive whiteboard in it, using SERIOUS BLAZIN' is a very straightforward process for teaching staff.