Topics like online porn and sexting can be difficult to bring up in family conversations. A new six-part web series called The Eggplant offers young people tools for online safety - with a good dose of humour.
Parents who grew up without the internet are often unsure what to advise their kids about staying safe there, says Trina Lowry from The Department of Internal Affairs, which made the series.
Watching The Eggplant, which is filmed at Manurewa High School, has opened up conversation between Lowry and her own teenage daughter, she tells Wallace Chapman.
The show tries to bring humour to subjects that can be painful and shameful for young people, Lowry says.
"There's a lot of people suffering in silence so we're really trying to open up conversations and get those people asking for help."
The Eggplant's production team worked hard to make the show suitable for teenagers to watch on their own, unsupervised, Lowry says, and also as funny and relatable as possible.
Wellington actor Karen O'Leary is hilarious as principal of the fictional Hilltop High where The Eggplant is set, she says.
Her personal pick of the funniest episode is about sending nude pictures: "I couldn't believe they could do that with a ham roll"
The Eggplant's title - inspired by the eggplant emoji that's commonly used as a symbol for a penis - is "a little bit of tongue in cheek humour" for young people, Lowry says.
The Eggplant is available on YouTube and TVNZ On Demand. The Keep It Real Online website has additional advice for parents.
