BET launches
youth HIV script writing contest

Black Entertainment Television and the Kaiser Family Foundation, through their Rap-It-Up HIV public education initiative, have teamed up with Scenarios USA to create the "2006 Scenarios USA/Rap It Up Story and Scriptwriting Contest." The contest, which carries the theme "What's the Real Deal on Growing Up in the Age of AIDS?" encourages young people ages 13 to 18 to write about what HIV means to them personally and to their friends, family, and communities. The script submission deadline is June 9.

Contest winners will have their scripts made into short films, and they will work with professional film directors in casting, shooting, and editing their projects. The winning films will be shown on BET in spring 2007.

"Informing young people about HIV is essential to stopping the spread of the disease," said Tina Hoff, vice president and director of entertainment media partnerships at the Kaiser Family Foundation. "Engaging young people to share their experiences with HIV to help inform their peers is a powerful way to build understanding and break down the stigma that surrounds HIV/AIDS."

For more information about the script writing competition, go online to www.Rap-It-Up.com,www.bet.com, or www.scenariosusa.org. (The Advocate)