And the Band Played On (ATOM Study Guide)

And the Band Played On is an adaptation of Randy Shilt's novel of the same name. It's a docudrama that chronicles the early years of the AIDS epidemic and attempts to explain how the outbreak of rare opportunistic infections in 1981 has been able to develop into a worldwide catastrophe. A docudrama combines the methodical investigative style of the documentary with a drama's focus on the human face of emotional conflict. The documentary seeks to discover truth. the drama injects events with real emotion to make an impact.

Curriculum Links

This guide was written for secondary students from year levels 7 to 11 and has sections of direct relevance to English, Social Studies, History and Science students.