Parallel Lives is an interactive dual-narrative short film created by WaterAid, an international charity which has
a focus on water, sanitation and hygiene, in an aim to generate awareness on the
issue of safe water for birth deliveries. As part of the organisation’s Deliver Life campaign, the film
portrays two midwives – one from Tanzania and one from the UK – as they take
viewers through a day in each of their very different worlds.
The film, which was produced by WaterAid’s internal production team, offers
viewers the opportunity to click between the midwives’ paradoxical situations while
they are watching the narrative unfold, allowing them to see the difference in
conditions. According to the WaterAid website, producer Catherine Feltham says the film was created to encourage British viewers to relate to the situation many
midwives and mothers face around the world. “One of the scenes that affects me
most is how easy it is for people to get a drink of water or a cup of tea in the UK,
compared with family members collecting water for women to wash in and drink at
a nearby river in Tanzania,’ says Feltham. “By sharing the conditions other mums
and midwives have to deal with, we hope to motivate the British public to donate to
our Deliver Life appeal and help us raise awareness of this situation.’
Parallel Lives was shot in Kiomboi Hospital in Tanzania and in
Liverpool Women’s Hospital in the UK.
