Bolingbrook Grad's Anti-Bullying Film to Make Worldwide Debut in Valley View Schools

In coming weeks, many Valley View School District 365U students will mark Bullying Prevention Month by viewing a short film called “The Bully Report.”

What makes “The Bully Report” so special is it was written and produced by Bolingbrook High School Class of 1989 graduate Vincent Irby and it was shot in its entirety at VVSD’s Wood View Elementary School.

Irby, a former news broadcaster turned film maker, has also submitted the 4-minute film to the Sundance Film Festival as well as several other film festivals.

“I wanted my first project to be meaningful and I wanted to do something other than boy falls in love with girl. I wanted to do something with legs,” the Los Angeles resident said. “After doing a year’s worth of research onbullying, I decided I wanted to tell a story that could be seen in schools and could actually effect change.

“I like stories where someone goes through a period of suffering and endures, then ultimately perseveres. What a character does when faced with a bitter experience is what either makes him wilt or makes him a hero,” Irby added. “In "The Bully Report," our lead character does not wilt.”

Being a Valley View graduate and with his “incredible” crew based in Bolingbrook, shooting the film in Bolingbrook was an easy decision. And, after  he met VVSD Community Outreach Coordinator Michele Bochnak at a bullyingpresentation late last winter, Wood View was selected as the site.

Filming took place over one weekend in May. Irby enlisted Lee Levin to direct the film and brought cinematographer Robert Patrick Stern on board. Professional actress Becca Battoe was hired to serve as the teacher in the film. And Wood View students volunteered to be actors and actresses.

“I looked from high school to middle school to grade school and realized if I could do a winning story about 4th and 5th graders that has a happy ending, I knew I could have a direct affect on kids,” Irby said.

Irby is excited about making his film debut in his home school district and is looking forward to the film receiving tremendous exposure around the country.

“When you produce a film, you want as many people as possible to see it, whether it’s a short film or a long film,” he said. “To think that potentially millions of kids could see this, that’s exciting. That’s a filmmaker’s dream.

“I want to keep making serious films,” he added. “I see myself writing and producing feature films and made-for-TV movies.”

Wood View students who took part in the May filming included John Carens, Isabella Cotas, Izabell Diaz, Jazmine Diaz, Emily Fogt, Miranda Fry, Kayla Gaspar, Giovanni Goytia, Mackenzie Hagan, Kyla Hamlin, Kayla Hamlin, Iyana Harris, Maggie Hollingsworth, Micah Huff, Azaria Jordan, Dayna Kapral, Nick Kaufmann, Allie Koschetz, Aidan Leggett, Josiah Moran, Nathan Moran, Alexander Moreno, Olivia Moscato, Sasankaa Mummareddi, Makayla Owens, Ashley Raga, Cuyler Ratliff, Megan Reynolds, Trinity Smith, Leslie Terrazas, Peyton Terry, and Antonio Valdivia.

Irby’s film will be shown at the Oct. 15 VVSD School Board meeting.