Motherland's Hugh Mulhern Wins 2019 Emerging Directors Award

Hugh Mulhern's film 'BeInCtrl' won best charity film at the 2019 EDA awards in Dublin this week, fighting off stiff competition in the process.

The powerful film from Motherland and Irish internet safety awareness centre, Webwise, aims to put power back in the hands of young people online. It depicts the stories of two teenagers subjected to online sexual coercion and extortion with the purpose of informing young people that this behaviour is a crime. 

“It aims to raise awareness of how to protect yourself online as well as where to find help and support and to give young people 'Ctrl',” explained Webwise.

The transitional years from child to adult can be trepidatious for some, yet for many it’s a time to solidify and develop your own ideas of the world. This film acts as a tool to inform an audience that are already deeply immersed in social media. 

“For this message to truly resonate with an audience that have already heard all the horror stories, we needed to make them really feel something,” said Hugh Mulhern, director. 

The film contains two mediums; the footage from the characters’ phones and a cinematic perspective, communicating to the viewer a grounded sense of reality.

“Although the subject matter is frightening, we wanted our audience to come away feeling empowered with the knowledge of what to do if you get yourself into a situation like the ones in these films,” said Hugh.