Living Proof:
HIV And The Pursuit Of Happiness

Year: 1993
Running Time: 68 minutes

Speech Rate: 175 words/min

Large Words
Average: 3.1
Minimum/Maximum: 0/12

Purchase Price (VHS): $450
Rental Price: $150 (Discounts for non-profit organizations)

Distributor:
First Run/Icarus Films
153 Waverly Place
6th Floor
New York, NY 10014
(212) 727-1711 or FAX (212) 989-7649

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The video begins with PWHIVs’ description of the myths and psychological traumas that accompany an HIV-positive test result or an AIDS diagnosis. Throughout the video, participants emphasize that HIV and AIDS are not death sentences.

The video chronicles several persons who are highly athletic and active. One, for example, is a marathon runner, and another a swimmer. One woman discusses how her HIV diagnosis led her away from street drugs while others discuss how their HIV status allowed them to follow their true passion in life.

Also addressed are the suffering, isolation, and frustration that can be associated with HIV disease. An impromptu group discusses questions about drug therapies. A “state of healthy denial” is presented as one important coping strategy. Participants discuss how HIV forces people to reassess their lives. One of the participants sums up the tenor of the video: “Pain and suffering is life, but misery is a choice—I choose not to be miserable.”

The technical production quality is excellent. The viewer is given an intimate glimpse into the lives of a variety of vigorous people who happen to be living with HIV. The interview segments—in the photo studio and from the personal lives of the participants—are skillfully interwoven. The video gets its power from the wide range of people included, including a homeless man, a heterosexual couple, a Boy Scout, and several gay men.

African Americans
Gay & Bisexual Men
Latinos
Women
 
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