Back in February, a nonprofit in Richmond, Virginia announced an international contest: make the best video about childbirth on YouTube, and win $1000, $500, or $100. The goals were modest: maybe we'd get a handful of amateur videos about birth.

The contest drew inquiries and entries from all over the world.. Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein (makers of acclaimed Birth Documentary The Business of Being Born) and Dr. Sarah Buckley (an internationally renowned OBGYN and author) signed on to be guest judges. It was clear to us that people were passionate about this subject and that the floodgates had opened.

The winners have finally been chosen:

FIRST PRIZE, $1000

Prevent Cesarean Surgery, Ragan Cohen (California):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZy0JPtubiQ <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZy0JPtubiQ>

----“Such great myth-busting and important information for all women, I loved your use of natural scenes. I'd love to see this video getting lots of airplay in the public arena.” –Dr. Sarah Buckley, MD ----“The directness and statistics worked well together…” –Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein ----“Very well done.”  “One of my favorites. Talk about evidenced-based care; this really motivates someone to take action.” “This really puts it out there. Cesareans aren’t pretty.” “This was so emotional for me. The film does an excellent job questioning the idea that c-sections are easy, normal, and no big deal.” --from the BMV Judging Panel

SECOND PRIZE, $500

The Nature of Natural Birth, Laura Alvarez (Wisconsin):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrIPtVEjVnc <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrIPtVEjVnc>

----“Very sweet birth video - and of course we love the song and used it in the Business of Being Born!”—Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein ----“Gorgous photos of homebirth, nicely balanced with information. Well done!”—Dr. Sarah Buckley, MD ----“Amazing editing. Very professional. This film isn’t afraid to show birth as it really is.” “Lovely. Powerful. Very sweet.”  “I think the whole room was tearing up by the end of this one!” “So sweet and beautifully done.” --from the BMV Judging Panel

HONORABLE MENTION, $100

Misconception, Becky Carey (Virginia):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxRmVciXy-g <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vxRmVciXy-g>

----“Incorporated an excellent variety of people, lovely to have original music and real women's distilled wisdom, Great work!”—Dr. Sarah Buckley, MD ----“Very well done, nice mix between informative and emotional.”—Ricki Lake and Abby Epstein ----“Great editing. Good, casual, conversational tone. Catches a particular angle on the conversation surrounding the normalcy of birth.” “I just loved this one!” --from the BMV Judging Panel

Hundreds of thousands of people have watched these videos about evidence-based maternity care, which simply means giving pregnant and laboring women care that reflects the scientific evidence for safety and effectiveness. We'd love any help you can give us promoting the contest winners. You can see all the finalists and the rules on our website: http://birthmattersva.org/videocontest.html and the winners should be up tomorrow. We also have a Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=73753459808&ref=ts