''My Body My Rules'' (2015) is a three-minute animated film aimed at raising awareness of

female genital mutilation Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting, female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) and female circumcision, is the ritual cutting or removal of some or all of the external female genitalia. The practice is found ...

(FGM) amongst primary school aged children in the UK. The film was developed as a visual aid to help facilitate sessions on FGM in primary schools in the UK and for use by professionals and

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in h ...

s working with younger children at risk of FGM. It was developed by

Foundation for Women's Health, Research and Development The Foundation for Women's Health, Research and Development (FORWARD) is a British NGO, founded in 1983 by Efua Dorkenoo, that supports women who have experienced female genital mutilation (FGM) and tries to eliminate the practice. History FORWARD ...

(FORWARD) and Animage Films, and animated by Daniel Greaves, an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

winning animator. ''My Body My Rules'' was adapted from a previous animated short by FORWARD and Animage on the subject of FGM in the UK, entitled ''Needlecraft''. Funded by

Comic Relief Comic relief is the inclusion of a humorous character, scene, or witty dialogue in an otherwise serious work, often to relieve tension. Definition Comic relief usually means a releasing of emotional or other tension resulting from a comic episo ...

and the

Sigrid Rausing Trust Sigrid Maria Elisabet Rausing (born 29 January 1962) is a Swedish philanthropist, anthropologist and publisher. She is the founder of the Sigrid Rausing Trust, one of the United Kingdom's largest philanthropic foundations, and owner of ''Granta' ...

, and intended for the general public and professional audience, ''Needlecraft'' was launched on the web in June 2015. It won a gold world medal at the New York Festivals in 2016. A third short film, ''The True Story of Ghati and Rhobi'', was made for Africa.

References

External links

My Body My Rules
on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

FORWARD UK
Female genital mutilation in the United Kingdom British animated short films Social guidance films 2015 films 2015 animated short films Works about female genital mutilation 2010s British films British educational films {{short-animation-film-stub