Reimagining evidence through collaborative media

Collaborative Filmmaking (CFM) is an innovative, participatory visual research method that redefines how evidence is generated, shared, and used in global health. By training participants to create short films in response to research questions, CFM transforms traditional researcher–subject dynamics into equitable partnerships grounded in co-ownership and creative expression. Over the past eight years, CFM has been implemented in nine projects across six countries-Cambodia, India, Madagascar, Nepal, the Republic of Georgia, and the United States-addressing sensitive topics such as menstruation, bereavement, and alcohol use. 
Drawing on 16 semi-structured interviews with project leaders, this study explores how CFM functions as a three-fold tool: 1) a research method; 2) an instrument for social advocacy, and 3) as a behavior change intervention. Findings from the nine global projects highlight CFM's ability to amplify marginalized voices, foster empowerment, and produce rich, contextualized data through visual storytelling. The creative and emotional dimensions of film encouraged reflection, dialogue, and community engagement while enabling findings to reach audiences beyond academia. 
Despite challenges, which included technological barriers, limited technological literacy, and resource demands, CFM proved adaptable across diverse sociocultural contexts. Its participatory essence not only enhanced data quality but also advanced equity and ethical engagement in research. 
CFM exemplifies "innovation in evidence," challenging extractive models of data collection and expanding what counts as knowledge. By merging art, ethics, and advocacy, CFM invites global health researchers and practitioners to embrace creativity as a pathway to understanding, and harness storytelling as a catalyst for collective action.

Women and adolescent girls living in densely populated informal settlements in Mumbai face overlapping challenges in managing menstruation, sexuality, and reproductive health. Social stigma, entrenched gender norms, and constrained resources limit open discussion and shape daily experiences. Although qualitative research has documented these barriers extensively, insights rarely return to the communities that inform them, and traditional dissemination formats often fail to stimulate meaningful dialogue. To address this gap, we developed a participatory multimedia exhibit designed to translate qualitative findings into community-centered storytelling. 
Women and girls from several informal settlements collaborated with local artists and researchers through filmmaking workshops, photography walks, and sound-recording sessions. Together, they produced short films, photographic essays, and audio narratives portraying their lived experiences of menstruation, sexuality, and womanhood. These works were curated into a traveling exhibit and shown in community centers, universities, and screenings within the slum. 
The exhibit reached more than 500 viewers and elicited strong emotional and reflective responses. Participants described seeing their stories represented publicly as empowering and validating, while community audiences reported increased comfort discussing SRH topics after the screenings. The participatory filmmaking process fostered confidence, skills, and solidarity among creators, while the multimedia format deepened empathy and understanding across diverse audiences. 
This project demonstrates how arts-based, participatory dissemination can reconfigure the research-to-action pathway in global health. By positioning community members as storytellers and knowledge-holders, the exhibit transforms qualitative findings into resonant, accessible media that reduce stigma, prompt dialogue, and support community-driven advocacy. 

Radio is a powerful social behavior change communication (SBCC) tool for health education in Nigeria, especially in rural areas. Family Planning (FP) radio programs with call-in sessions engaged Resource Persons (RPs) to foster trust and behavior change. To enhance the effects of initiatives like "Get it Right," which encouraged the use of hormonal IUDs, it is essential to assess the quality of RP responses.   
This paper developed the criteria for assessing the quality of the RPs' responses on the "Get it Right" radio program using the PEBIC criteria (Presentation, Empathy, Bias Elimination, Information Correctness, and Context Specificity).  
Analysis of 723 questions/responses during the radio program showed a clear difference between the program's two segments: Technical Segment: The RPs' responses were of high quality (81%), with strong performance across all PEBIC criteria (at least 90%), indicating expertise in providing information and debunking myths. Entertainment Education Segment: Responses were of moderate quality (58%). A significant gap was identified in Empathy, although other criteria were mostly scored high (at least 75%). 
The findings emphasized that using RPs in interactive health-related radio programming is valuable, but their skills might need modification. High technical quality, contrasted with lower performance in storytelling, suggests there is a need for training in interpersonal communication. The PEBIC criteria are a promising framework to evaluate and train RPs to ensure effective, empathetic, and high-quality health-related messaging for all, especially the underserved Nigerian audiences.  

The Comic Book Road Show project in Zambia's Eastern Province challenged conventional "extract and exit" evaluation models by prioritizing community knowledge and government partnership in assessing adolescent health interventions. Facing teenage pregnancy rates of 39.5%, widespread child marriage, and high SGBV cases, Population Media Center implemented Dambo Lathu (Our Swamp), a multimedia intervention combining visual storytelling with Chichewa audio narration in 10 schools across Katete and Chadiza districts.
What distinguished this evaluation was its commitment to returning evidence to its source. Rather than extracting data and departing, PMC translated findings into Chichewa and conducted dissemination sessions with communities and government officials who had shaped the intervention's content and tools. This approach revealed critical insights invisible to standardized metrics: while 52% of formal indicators showed positive change, community feedback identified unmeasured impacts including traditional leaders requesting screenings, spontaneous demand for printed materials, and gradual norm shifts around harmful cultural practices.
The Ministry of Health found this transparent knowledge-sharing approach so valuable they sought to mandate it for all implementing partners. Communities emphasized that PMC's return to share findings was itself transformative, contrasting with organizations that "walk away" without providing closure or evidence of impact.
This case demonstrates that ethical evidence generation requires embedding community dissemination into project design from inception, with dedicated budgets, timelines, and training. By recognizing that those experiencing interventions possess irreplaceable knowledge about change processes, the project shows how community validation strengthens rather than threatens evaluation rigor, ultimately transforming both program quality and community trust.