| cyberbu//y | |
|---|---|
Promotional poster |
|
| Distributed by | Muse Entertainment Enterprises |
| Directed by | Charles Binamé |
| Produced by | Jesse Prupas |
| Written by | Teena Booth |
| Starring | Emily Osment Kay Panabaker Kelly Rowan |
| Music by | James Gelfand |
| Editing by | Simon Webb |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Release date | July 17, 2011 |
| Running time | 87 minutes |
Cyberbully (stylized cyberbu//y) is a television film that premiered on July 17, 2011 on ABC Family. ABC Family worked with Seventeen magazine to make the film, and hopes it will "delete digital drama". The film tells the story of a teenage girl who is bullied online.[1] The movie was filmed in Montreal. The film will be released on DVD February 7, 2012.[2]
Contents |
The film follows Taylor Hillridge, a teenage girl who receives a computer for her birthday from her mom. Taylor is excited by the independence of going online without her mother always watching her. However, Taylor soon finds herself the victim of cyberbullying when she becomes a member of a social website. She becomes afraid to face her friends including her best friend Samantha and is pushed to a breaking point. Taylor almost commits suicide by overdosing with pills, but cannot get the cap off, and is sent to a hospital. Taylor's mom learns from the incident and takes on the school system and state legislation to prevent others from going through the same problem as her daughter.[3]
The film received a generally positive review from Common Sense Media, who gave the film a 4 out of 5 star rating, stating "Cyberbully is a great jumping-off point for talking to teens about the very real dangers that exist online. The movie does a good job of working in most of the hot-button issues related to this topic, including the anonymity that exists online, the legal loopholes that enable cyberbullying, the social pressure on teens to partake in digital relationships, and the emotional devastation that bullying inflicts on its victims and their families."[4]
On July 5, 2011 Charlotte Russe created "delete" t-shirts which were available at malls across the United States. The t-shirts come in black and white with "[delete]" on them. Also on July 5, 2011 Verizon Wireless customers can text “Delete” to 3332 to pledge that they will help end digital drama. Twitter accounts can now get a "Twibbon" to their page, that says to stop cyberbullying.[5]
On July 14, 2011 ABC Family hosted a live event called "The Rally to Delete Digital Drama" in Glendale, California. The rally included appearances from Shay Mitchell, Tyler Blackburn, Daren Kagasoff, Skyler Samuels, Grey Damon, Katie Leclerc, Vanessa Marano, Emily Osment, and more. Emily Osment made a surprise musical performance where she performed her song "Drift" and more. There also was autograph signing and gift giveaways.[6]
Cyberbully gained 3.4 million views on its official release date. It was TV's number one telecost for the 8-10 p.m. time slot. It became the week's number one TV movie, and the second most viewed TV movie of the 2010 and 2011 season.[7]
Emily Osment released a song called "Drift" which was featured in the film. It was released on July 12, 2011. The movie also used "Breathe Me" by Sia. TV spots of the movie contain the song "Perfect" by Pink.