In honour of Gambling Awareness Week, 2013, Banyule Youth Services has created two videos that highlight the potential risks of gambling. The project was funded by Victoria’s Responsible Gambling Foundation, and North East Primary Care Partnership and Gambler’s Help Northern also collaborated to produce the videos. Ten young people aged 12 to 19 were involved with the creation of the two films.
They were involved in the Jets program, which aims to help young people express themselves through art. Film editing is one of the projects available, and the youths involved in this program were enthusiastic about creating a film on the dangers of gambling. “It was such a motivated group,” says Josh Kane of Jets. “We planned to make one film but the strength of their ideas and their commitment saw us end up making two”.
The first film is titled “A Win Here Isn’t A Win There”. It opens with a young man playing pokies, feeding plenty of money into the game. As he spins the reels, several winning combinations appear. When three car symbols appear, his car is shown being towed away. When three hearts symbols appear, his girlfriend is shown breaking up with him.
As this continues to happen, the player becomes increasingly hysterical. The second film is titled “You May Win But You’ll Always Lose”. The films begins with a man enjoying breakfast with his family in a happy environment. He is then shown going all in during a game of cards at a casino.
He heads back home and takes the fork from his daughter’s hand, his son’s toys and his wife’s wedding ring before wagering them all on another game of cards. When he goes back to his home, his family is no longer there. These films do a great job of showing the ways in which problem gambling can affect the lives of families across Australia through the eyes of youths.
For more information on the Jets program, visit: http://www.banyuleyouth.com/jets
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