The young filmmakers were all part of a flexible learning program called SMART CONNECTIONS which was an activity of Wesley Mission Brisbane’s youth services’ division. SMART was an educational program, federally funded by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations and was aimed at young people 13 to 19, who had been unable to attend mainstream education for a variety of reasons, including severe bullying. Program Coordinator Fiona Ware said the 'Smarties' decided to make the film to share their stories in the hope of giving support and encouragement to other young people who had suffered from being bullied and show them the steps they had taken to building greater resilience and hope in their own lives!.

What makes our film so different from the others is that it's made by young people for young people. We've been there. Most of us have suffered at the hands of bullies. We know firsthand exactly what it feels like and we also know how to pull ourselves out of the deep, dark hole that bullying may dig.

For the production of the film the young people created their own five teams according to their talents and interests. They were:

‘The Smart Arts’ :T Shirt designs, DVD cover designs, Animation art and character designs.

‘The Tackle Boxes’:Filming, photography, sound and lighting.

‘The Music Makers’:Song writing, music production for the soundtrack and performances of songs for the general public.

‘The Spin Doctors’: Fundraising, promotion & marketing, developing the website and associated computer work

‘The Launch Team’: the planning and management of the inaugural launch of the film and Connections program.

Then each small team came together to meet as a Production Team once a week!

As part the program, some of the young people created music for the film. Click the button below to play the theme song for the Walk in my Shoes Film, Performed by Jade.

Download MP3