Film program34 or 55 minutes, two versions
Upstanders
Stories and strategies for speaking up safely, and for building belonging.
A school or a workplace gets one shared language for naming bullying, and the confidence to step in. An award-winning documentary and an evidence-based one-month or year-long program — for students, staff and families.
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Part of the Creative Coping Toolkit.
Watch the trailer
A film program about kindness, respect, resilience and the power of connection to end bullying.
The program explores every side of bullying, from the brain science to how it plays out — from subtle scenarios to full-blown bullying. Social media has made bully behavior a 24/7 phenomenon, where changing schools, jobs or phone numbers cannot stop the cycle.
The film weaves together the personal stories of kids and their families with educators, brain scientists and mental health experts, and shows why safely modeling empathy and resilience changes both attitudes and action.
The details
- Runtime
- 34 or 55 minutes, two versions
- License
- A 24-hour screening license for a single event, a one-month program, or annual and multi-year licenses for the whole program.
- Who takes part
- Ages 10 and up take part directly; K–4 through activities an adult leads. Content note: Upstanders includes a teen suicide storyline, told in its 55-minute version for ages 12 and up.
- Support tier
- Tier 1 and Tier 2 support for a whole class, grade, team or community.
- Compliance
- Complies with applicable COPPA and FERPA requirements, and supports schools and libraries in meeting their CIPA obligations.
What’s included in each Film Program
The film runs under an hour. Upstanders is film-powered and evidence-based: the chapters, guided activities and expert answers beside it carry the program across the year, not just one screening.
Chapters
The film in short chapter modules, each with prompts for discussion and reflection.
Learning Journey
A guided path through the whole program: the film, activities, expert answers and quick checks, step by step.
Activities
Guided activities that turn what the film raises into something to practice, alone or together.
Expert answers
Short videos in which experts answer the questions real viewers ask most.
Guides
Group leader guides, session plans and the Upstanders 101 course for whoever runs the session.
GiGi
An ethical AI guide for adults: ask for an activity, a discussion plan, or brain science in plain language. Not for children or teens on their own. A guide to the toolkit, not a mental health professional or a crisis service.
Who it's for
License Upstanders on its own or bundle it with the other three film programs.
Already screening The Upstanders?
The screening kit and the resources
Two support pages sit behind the program: what you need to fill the room and run the night, and what to give the families and colleagues who come to you afterwards.
Upstanders Program Package
Guides and templates, posters in four print sizes, logos, eleven social graphics, sample posts, the tip sheet, the discussion guide and the post-screening activities.
Open the program packageUpstanders Resources
Websites and the other places we point families and colleagues to when they want to go further after a screening.
Open the resources
The impact of The Upstanders
What viewers said after watching.
Survey results from the educators and students who took part in the program. Read the impact report
95%
said the program gave them helpful tools and tips on how to be an Upstander.
94%
think The Upstanders should be shown at every organization or school.
92%
intend to practice some of the tools and tips from the program.
75%
said The Upstanders changed the way they look at bullying behavior.
Pricing is based on the size of your community, not a set price list, so we work one-on-one with each organization.
See the Toolkit for yourself
Previews of all four programs, the full group leader guides and a sample engagement report. Free, with no payment details, and nothing ends on a date.
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