In a press release, the Responsible Gambling Council, Ontario (RGCO) has developed a video drama, “After the Beep,” about youth gambling. The script for the video, originally a stage play, was written by Sault Saint Marie high school students Carla Barriero, Lily DeMiglio and Bridget Lamberts. The final product, a video produced by the Sault Saint Marie Council and staged by the local Family Life Theater, is working as an aid to teachers trying to prevent youth problem gambling. It is free for showing to all Ontario high schools.

The video is 22 minutes in length and features “... four students during their first year at university. The lead character receives a swimming scholarship and finds himself in a dorm with a heavy gambler who proceeds to have a destructive effect on those around him. The poignant lesson learned in ‘After the Beep' is one of potential loss -- but not just in the gambling sense.”

“After the Beep” was originally presented as a play and in the last two years was seen by more than 30,000 high school students across Ontario. The script was the winner among 30 entries for an anti-gambling contest sponsored by the RGCO. “The [stage] play was so well received that we decided to make it even more widely available to students and teachers,” said Laurie Bell, RGCO's Director of Prevention Programs. “The video carries a powerful message in a realistic play. It is written for students by students, with the characters using the language of their peers,” she said.