Ah Kong (阿公) which means grandfather is a 6 minutes short film by Royston Tan about Dementia. The film tells a poignant story of a grandson seeking to understand and reach out to his grandfather who is diagnosed with dementia. Ah Kong is part of HPB‟s campaign this year to raise awareness of dementia.

The short film start off with a few people praising Ah Kong in his younger days, cuts off to Ah Kong talking to the grandson and ends by the grandson understanding his ah gong condition and playing along with him.

After watching the short film, you will feel nothing, but if you watch it once again, you will be able to extract out the key points which will relate to the top three warning signs of dementia. Memory loss that affects day to day functions, difficulty doing familiar tasks and confusion about time and place.

The two-minute version of the film will air on Channel 8, Suria and Vasantham on 26th September 2010 while the full-length version can be viewed on YouTube from 20 September 2010. Copies of the film will also be made into DVDs and distributed for free at Poh Kim and VideoEzy outlets.

Ah Gong Teaser (30 seconds)

What Is Dementia
From Wikipedia:

Dementia (taken from Latin, originally meaning “madness”, from de- “without” + ment, the root of mens “mind”) is a serious loss of cognitive ability in a previously unimpaired person, beyond what might be expected from normal aging. It may be static, the result of a unique global brain injury, or progressive, resulting in long-term decline due to damage or disease in the body. Although dementia is far more common in the geriatric population, it may occur in any stage of adulthood.

Top Ten Warning Signs of Dementia

  1. Memory loss that affects day to day functions
  2. Difficulty doing familiar tasks
  3. Confusion about time and place
  4. Problems communicating
  5. Difficulty planning or solving problems
  6. Poor or decreased judgement
  7. Misplacing things
  8. Changes in mood or behaviour
  9. Changes in personality
  10. Withdrawal from work or social activities