Introduction to the Film

DADS MATTER TOO

The young dads in this film have made it for a number of reasons. They are aware that, as a group, they do not get a ‘good press’. They want to show they are willing to face up to their responsibilities as parents, and that they recognise their importance in the lives of their children.

They are well aware of the difficulties they face. They feel health service professionals often overlook them during their partners’ pregnancies. They experience family conflict, accusations of being too young, problems with housing and finance, tensions in their relationships with their partners. Indeed some of them are no longer with the mothers of their children but maintain, or want to maintain, contact with their children.

Knowing these difficulties first hand means that they are not encouraging other young people to view teenage parenthood as a desirable condition. Far from it, but issues relating to teenage sexual activity, contraception, and teenage pregnancy are not what they want the film to be about. Rather it’s their need for support, through courses like U-Too’s Young Dads-To-Be course, finance to make this support available, and the consequent need to raise awareness among politicians and the general public of their experiences.
They want this film to help inform the national debate about teenage parenthood, challenge stereotypical prejudices, and remind us that ‘dads matter too’.

- Mike White, U-Too. May 2008.