“Be the Hero,” the Stop One Save One video, is now one of seven finalists in the StopBullying.gov Video Challenge

The film features juniors Rex Willis, Hannah Williams, Daniel Gilgannon, and seniors Connor Williams, Christine Bor and Danielle Horridge.
Horridge submitted the film to StopBullying.gov Video Challenge on Oct. 6.

“We heard about the contest through a Safe Schools/Healthy Students representative, Jenna Easton, who works with our group,” Horridge said.

Safe Schools/Healthy Students “is a unique Federal grant-making program designed to prevent violence and substance abuse among our Nation’s youth, schools, and communities,” according to their website.  They support the prevention of violence, drug and alcohol as well as anti-bullying.”

The video challenge “sounded like a great opportunity, and we knew that even if we didn’t win it would be fun and nice to have a video sharing our message,” Horridge said.  “Learning how to be more than a bystander in bullying situations is something that needs more emphasis in high school, as students don’t always know what to do or how to react.”

Horridge recruited junior Tim Schauer to help with the project.  “I’m not really in Stop One Save One, but I’ve never been a pro-bullying person, and Hannah Williams and Danielle Horridge came to me to ask for help, and they filled me in on the challenge,” Schauer said.  “We talked about ideas at lunch one day, then I wrote up a script, and the other people from Stop One Save One agreed to be in the video.”

Stop One Save One began as a leadership project two years ago by senior Dashon Tibbs that has now expanded both within Albemarle and to other nearby schools.   The group participates in many projects, such as the blue hands on the wall by the history hall.

“Be the Hero” features Willis as part of the “Super-Anti-Bullying League,” rushing to stop the bullying of a student.  But before he can, another classmates stops the perpetrators, proving the point of the video: anyone can be the hero and stop bullying.

“Most of it we filmed in Mrs. Tyler’s room at long lunch one day.  We actually just finished shooting as the bell rang,” Schauer said.  “Then the other shots I got by meeting Rex Willis before school and having him run around and get in his car. It actually took us a really long time to get a shot of the red light, we were driving around with me leaning back as far as I could in the passenger seat, we kept getting green lights.”

“Tim edited it and dealt with all of the YouTube and government challenge guidelines while I submitted the video to StopBullying.gov,” Horridge said.  “While adults and staff have been extremely helpful in spreading the video around and asking people to vote, the video is 100 percent student made.”

As of press time, the video had 4,655 views on YouTube and 560 likes on Facebook.

First place in the competition would win 2,000 dollars, the two runners up each receiving 500 dollars.   The winner was picked based on voting, which ended on Dec. 10.  StopBullying.gov will announce the on Dec. 20, at 5 p.m.