Former YoTV presenter Sade Giliberti stars in an LGBTQI+ short film which highlights the type of cyberbully face daily by members of the community.
In the short film, several prominent figures within the LGBTQI+ community, including Sade Giliberti, are depicted receiving the daily hate comments on social media with it being shown by a real-life person.
Speaking from personal experience, I have received many homophobic comments on Twitter and mostly just read those homophobes for filth, and when they start spiralling down a non-sensical thread I just respond with a gif.
And while I'm able to just ignore homophobic Twitter trolls as I am secure in my sexuality and can ignore their comments like water off a duck's back, for a large amount of LGBTQI+ youth it's not as easy.
The script includes real tweets and features a wide variety of members from the community.
One of the most startling things shown are the stats at the end credit stating that 43% of LGBTQI+ youth experiencing cyberbullying with them being twice as likely to commit suicide from it.
The director of the film Jake Graf, being a trans man himself, has also been on the receiving end of transphobic comments.
Speaking to HuffPost UK, Graf says that he wanted to highlight the dangerous impact cyberbullying has on queer youth.
“Even after my recent wedding, my wife Hannah and I were trolled by people saying we shouldn’t be allowed to marry, that we were just freaks, that we were both mentally ill. This was all after the happiest day of our lives.”
Graf hopes that his film helps people rethink before they post hate comments online.
“Maybe just take a moment to consider how you would feel if someone said them to you, and write something kind instead.”