James: a short film against bullying
As we grow a part of us is lost: the imagination. A quality that makes us face the day to day in a very particular way that unfortunately ends up disappearing. Those fantasy corners to which you can flee before certain problems that make reality is not enough and it is necessary to escape to other worlds to avoid suffering in this.
The story of JAMES is a short film where we meet a child who uses his imagination to escape one of the problems that unfortunately affects young people with more virulence: bullying or cyberbullying. Thanks to his imagination the protagonist of this video manages to find a valve with which he escapes from the thugs found in his school.
The story of James
This short story tells us about the daily life of James, an American child with a great imagination. Unfortunately for this young man he not only has to face a disability in his knee, but he also has to face school harassment from other students at school. However, this boy keeps inside a great secret that makes his problems go flying.
James has a great imagination to live his day to day as if instead of his world, was in a universe where one of his great passions: science fiction. In this way, this boy is not a normal student, but he is a soldier of the future who will face each day a mission with which to safeguard the order of the universe with his inseparable friend: his favorite toy.
Thanks to this James faces his day to day with better spirit thanks to his imagination, which allows him to face his problems and not feel cowed by the thugs waiting for him at school. In fact, it even allows him to stand up to his stalkers at the moment when they attack his fellow adventurer.
The problem of bullying
The truth is that the problem that suffers in his day to day the protagonist of this short is not fiction and unfortunately bullying is an issue that is the order of the day. An issue that every day that goes by is even worse as indicated by the figures of foundation of Aids to Children and Adolescents at Risk, ANAR, which show an increase of 75%.
That is, in 2015 there were a total of 573 calls reporting a case of school harassment against the 328 recorded in 2014. Something that is related to the proliferation of new technologies which have not only increased these cases but also they have contributed to the feeling of danger increasing since at present eight out of 10 young people believe they are at risk of cyberbullying.
How to act in a case of harassment?
These data show how school bullying is clearly one of the most serious problems that occur in the classrooms of our country and that are becoming increasingly worse every day. This is why it is necessary to make parents and children understand how they should behave in one of these cases so that the corresponding authorities take a letter in the matter:
1. Sit with the victim and listen everything that you have to express feels. We also have to make him understand that both the family and the school staff will give him all their support.
2. Ask questions with knowing the details of this case and the name of those involved. In this sense, it is also important to talk with the child's friends and acquaintances in order to know points that the victim may be afraid to reveal.
3. Ask teachers and other school staff if they have detected or can observe if some strange behavior is occurring that could lead to think that a case of bullying is happening
4. To inform the security forces and bodies so that they act in accordance with the Law, in serious cases and when there is a clear knowledge that a child is being bullied.
Damián Montero
