The Bystander

 
My film title is ‘The Bystander’ and it is about a girl who is friends with a group of 3 others that begin to bully a new pupil at their school. The four girls begin to tease and taunt this girl simply because they can and whilst this carries on the fourth member of the group knows that what they are doing is wrong and she doesn’t want to be a part of it – making her ‘The Bystander’. Although she knows she doesn’t want to take part in any of the bullying she does not tell her friends to stop or stand up for the victim for fear she herself may become one or they may stop being friends with her.

As the film progresses various incidents take place each one becoming more nastier and in between each incident we cut back to a scene where The Bystander is speaking to her Mother about an issue she is facing – the issue of bullying at school. Whilst each incident takes place the camera cuts back to the ongoing conversation being had at home with her Mother.

When the Bystander finally says something to her friends the damage has already been done because that morning when she plans to meet the new girl and apologise to her she doesn’t come into school and the group of girls never see her again.

Dan and I chose to do a piece like this as we wanted to project an issue and produce an opinion derived from the viewing that was different to anybody else’s in our class. Bullying is a particularly sensitive issue that happens on a daily basis across the world and our short film shows that even the smallest bit of hurt caused by somebody else can have the most devastating effects.