Lights, camera, flu shot!

We’re heading into flu season, which means it’s time to think about ... making a video? That’s what the California Department of Public Health would like people to consider as they launch their second annual Flu-Fighting Film and Poster Festival.

The agency is asking people to come up with short video public service announcements about fighting the flu, including messages about covering coughs and sneezes, washing hands, getting a flu shot, etc. This year they’re also including a poster contest to create a graphic touting the same points.

Last year’s entries offered various interpretations on the theme, including one done in a 1950s-era genre, and a claymation video we especially liked featuring a pig and a joke about swine flu. Get it?

California residents 14 and older are eligible, and categories include English-language video, Spanish-language video, English-language poster and Spanish-language poster. The deadline is Nov. 7, and winners receive a $250 gift card courtesy of the California Immunization Colalition. Last year’s winners had their videos aired on public television stations throughout the state.

So put on your jodhpurs and grab a megaphone, or put up your easel and don your beret. There’s a flu to fight!

-Jeannine Stein