Birthday : Triumph of childbirth.

Date:
1979
  • Film

About this work

Description

A long intertitle with voice-over explains the context of the film which was originally from part of a film entitled 'The Triumph of Childbirth'. Its purpose is to offer psycho-prophylaxis for pregnant women to understand what will happen to them physiologically and physically in labour and counter act both the pain and fear of pain in childbirth. At the beginning there is an archive sequence of a rapid birth in the open from the famous anthropologists Margaret Mead and Gregory Batesons' work with indigenous peoples. Education to the parents to be is delivered via a series of lectures; they are initially delivered in the form of illustrations. A wider shot shows that the first lecture reveals that this is to the husbands of the mothers to be. In particular, it is hoped that women learn 'muscular disassociation'; the practioner sits on the floor with a small group of expectant mothers. Exercises and breathing are explained and demonstrated as the women breath, raise legs and then drop them, ie. gaining neuromuscular control. The nature of the contractions in each stage of labour is demonstrated with an overlay illustrating their severity. An obstetrician talks (he wears a mask whilst talking) about one of his patients, Mrs T. He recognises it will take time for this approach to be fully integrated into hospitals. Mrs T. gives birth at home assisted by her husband (who carries out finger tip massage on her abdomen having been trained in this technique), the obstetrician and midwife. Another patient who is deemed to need to work harder at this technique has her baby in hospital with the same team. It is noted that there is a lack of scientific evidence to support these techniques, although there is plenty of anedoctal evidence that they are worthwhile and enriching for the mother.

Publication/Creation

England, 1979.

Physical description

3 film reels (21 mins. ea) : sound; colour 16 mm

Notes

More material on the NCT is held in the Wellcome Library reference SA/NCT.
From an inventory, item 1 is a cut down copy showing the birth sequences only (catalogued separately); print no. 6 is very faded and scratched. Item 2 is the best film.
Supporting material is available in the department, a four pages on two A4 sheet leaflet entitled 'Films Leaflet - An Introduction to 'Birthday'' by Gwen Rankin. The original version of this film made in 1964 was 12 minutes duration. She writes that the film is 'one of the most valuable resources the NCT has for the teaching of birth'. Rankin outlines the possible reactions to the film and indicates that the film has been shown to antenatal audiences as well as in schools from ages thirteen upwards. Of the two births shown (one in hospital and one at home), it is observed that as the labouring woman enters into the transitional stage from stage one to stage two in labour she appears in distress; Rankin points out that she suddenly became conscious of the eighteen men at the bottom of the bed who formed the film crew! It is noted that six expectant parents freely volunteered to be filmed based on their due dates and the choice of the final two in the film was as result of when the births actually happened and that this footage is not the 'best of six'.

Creator/production credits

Smith Kline & French Laboratories England. Formulated and scripted by Ronald Bassett, Photography by Geoffrey Currin and Massey-Collier, Ilustrations by Douglas Pitch A.T.D. Edited by Geoffrey Muller. Directed by Robert King. Produced by Little King & partners Ltd. Facilities extended by The National Childbirth Trust and The Royal Northern Hospital London. With sequences by permission of Gregory Bateson and Margaret Mead, Institute of Intercultural Studies, New York.

Copyright note

National Childbirth Trust.

Type/Technique

Languages

Where to find it

  • Copy 3

    Location Access
    Closed stores
    5596FM
    Can't be requested

    Note

  • Copy 1

    Location Access
    Closed stores
    5596F
    Can't be requested

    Note

  • Copy 2

    Location Access
    Closed stores
    5596F
    Can't be requested

    Note

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