Michigan Filmmaker Addresses Bullying From Bully's Viewpoint

Birmingham filmmaker Amy Weber is sharing the one project she said is the most important in her life, The Bully Chronicles.
The 100 percent Michigan-made film is being celebrated at the Uptown Film Festival Nov. 7-9 at the Palladium 12 and Birmingham 8 Theatres in Birmingham.
The Bully Chronicles, which features real teens, teachers, and parents, is described by Weber as "a movement toward change in the form of a narrative feature film shot in an unscripted, documentary style."
In 2011, the award-winning documentary Bully, directed by Lee Hirsch, followed the lives of five students who faced bullying on a daily basis. That film mobilized hundreds of thousands to take action against the epidemic of school bullying in the U.S.
For the first time, Weber wants to tell the story from the bully's perspective, further addressing one of the most prevalent issues in society.
According to the film's official website http://www.thebullychronicles.com, the story follows Avery Keller, a beautiful and popular high school sophomore, whose systematic physical, emotional and cyber bullying results in the suicide attempt of her former best friend, Jessica Burns. The filmmaker explores Avery's life to uncover the reason why a seemingly 'perfect' young woman would engage in bullying. With the help of hidden camera footage taken by Jessica and her best friend, Brian Slater, the story unfolds through the discovery of documented, self-recorded video journals and confrontations with the bully.
"The hope for this film is to spark a movement organically as young people relate to it as both victims and abusers. Parents and schools may begin to realize, if they haven't already, that we have lost touch with our youth. This film will lead us in the right direction with education and awareness. It will help us find solutions so we, as a society, can make things better," said Weber, who has developed, written and produced more than 40 award-winning educational documentaries dealing with youth issues and education. She was honored as the 2011 Michigan Filmmaker of the Year for her first feature film, Annabelle and Bear. She is a former university educator, and the founder and owner of production company Radish Creative Group, Inc. in Royal Oak.
Weber said she is "honored" to share a weekly blog with her readers at The Huffington Post online. "I believe with all my soul that the time has come to raise our voices and speak the truth about how cruelty can destroy the human spirit and crumble our will to keep going," she said.
"We are dealing with young people in their formative years. They are making mistakes and trying on different personalities, and different coping mechanisms," she said. "This movement is about reaching the one's who are bullying and get to the underlying issues causing this in the first place. What's going on with that child that would cause this relentless pursuit to destroy another human being? As a society, we have to create a safe space for those who are struggling and don't know how to speak up."
The three-day festival will screen more than 100 diverse films, and will also host a series of special events, including an exclusive screening of The Bully Chronicles for the cast and crew only with a corresponding bullying solutions forum.
Weber explained why the film will not be open to the public at this point. "In order to be considered for competition at the Sundance Film Festival, The Bully Chronicles must be released as a world premiere. We are unable to participate in a way that we will, without a doubt, participate next year. The film will be available worldwide by then and it will be nice to bring it back home," she said.
Weber added that they are looking at different avenues for the film, including partnering with major sponsors. "We are trying to find the right spot to release the film to create the most impact. We want to give it the best chance to reach as large of an audience as possible."
This year's festival includes more filmmakers and productions from across the globe, according to Kirk Miller, UFF co-executive director. Miller said the goal is "to continue to raise awareness of the importance of a thriving film industry in Michigan."
Filmmaker and University of Michigan-Dearborn professor, H. James Gilmore's will debut Men at Work: Voices from Detroit's Underground Economy. Guest House is the latest from Los Angeles-based filmmaker Aaron Wolf. There will be an exclusive screening of ESPN Films' The Fab Five hosted by Detroit native and original Fab Five member Jalen Rose.