Cyberbully (2015 film)

Plot

The film takes place entirely in Casey Jacobs's bedroom and unfolds in real time. One evening, while listening to music, Casey finds her Spotify settings being tampered with. During a Skype call with her best friend Megan, who is about to go on a date, Casey learns that her ex-boyfriend Nathan has posted a cruel comment on Twitter about her use of anti-depressants. Megan suggests that their friend Alex hack Nathan's account as revenge, but Alex declines.

After the call ends, Casey receives an instant message appearing to be from Alex, providing a hacked link to Nathan's Twitter account. Casey posts a tweet about Nathan's erectile dysfunction as revenge, but soon realizes the messenger is an anonymous hacker. The hacker first describes themselves as a fan, showing Casey's past social media activity, then reveals they are a vigilante who helps victims of cyberbullying. When Casey tries to leave the chat, the hacker activates a screamer on her computer, takes control of her webcam, and communicates via a computer-generated voice.

The hacker threatens to post nude photographs of Casey online if she leaves the room, answers calls, or lets her father enter. Casey attempts to text Megan, but the hacker intercepts the message by accessing her phone. The hacker then uploads a video outing their friend Tamara as homosexual, provoking angry texts from Tamara. When Casey questions the hacker's actions, the hacker scoffs and reveals that Casey herself is the cyberbully.

Production

The film was based entirely on real experiences. To ensure the script accurately portrayed contemporary teenage life, writer/director Ben Chanan consulted both Maisie Williams and his own teenage daughter to remove any 'Dad-isms' from the script. Williams, who had been a victim of cyberbullying after being cast as Arya Stark in Game of Thrones, received messages calling her 'stuck up' and saying she thought she was 'too good for everyone else'. She admitted responding to the bullying in kind, stating that when you are 13 and someone says something nasty, you want to hurt them back.

Reception

Cyberbully received positive reviews from critics. The Spectator called it a 'very well made one, deftly shifting our sympathies throughout (with the aid of Maisie Williams's dazzling central performance) and full of genuine menace.' In The Guardian, Filipa Jodelka described Williams's performance as a 'tour-de-force', though she noted the film should not be viewed as a realistic depiction of cyberbullying but rather as a 'millennial ghost-in-the-machine spine-chiller.'

Mark Monahan of The Daily Telegraph gave the film three out of five stars, noting the plot's predictability but still finding it 'tense, all too topical, and – here's hoping – maybe even socially useful television.' Ellen E. Jones of The Independent called it 'that rare programme that felt authentic enough to persuade teens, while also engaging older viewers.' Lucy Mangan of The Guardian described it as 'part gothic horror, part An Inspector Calls for the digital age,' and praised Haruka Abe as Jennifer Li as the standout performer.

The film was nominated for Best Single Drama at the 2016 British Academy Television Awards and won the 2016 Prix Italia in the TV drama category.