“You are lucky to be so skinny. I have so much trouble watching what I eat ...”

It’s a comment out of nowhere in the middle of the school memorial for a classmate, Marcus, who perished in a car accident. The words are spoken by Sienna (Bailee Neitz) to Calvin (Gavin Berger).

Sienna becomes frustrated because she doesn’t feel heard by Calvin. What she doesn’t realize is he is struggling as well, having been bullied by Marcus and trying to come to terms with what has happened.

Although it is a small scene, it captures a glimpse of the unspoken situations Salisbury teenagers are struggling with and the social taboos the movie “Friend” is trying to break.

Written and directed by Salisbury HS student Charlie Morton, the movie has been gathering attention throughout the Lehigh Valley. The Press recently sat down with Morton, and three of the actors, to discuss “Friend,” as well as the mental health struggles faced by this generation of teenagers.

“I think it matters to everyone in high school. I mean, we’re all going through these struggles; you’re a teenager and you’re looking at your appearance and see what you look like in the mirror and see how you compare to everybody else. Who’s judging you and who’s not. And I feel that’s an important subject Charlie really covered,” Reese Petrie, who portrays Caroline, Calvin’s ex-girlfriend, said. According to Morton, 162 students, staff and administrators at SHS helped in one way or another to get this film produced over a period of three months.

From the beginning, classmate and longtime friend Ava Smarch felt Morton was doing something special.

“When Charlie first told me about the idea and he first started doing it, I thought it was really cool,” she said.

Smarch went on to explain her friendship with Morton, the unique opportunity to be part of a film and helping get an important message out there, were the key reasons why she decided to get involved.

She portrays Audrey, Marcus’ girlfriend, who is overcome with grief and organizes the memorial to remember and grieve as a school the loss of a student and classmate.

“It turned a lot bigger than I thought it would, and for a good reason,” Smarch reflected about the feedback the film has been receiving.

According to Morton, there’s been interest in the movie from Parkland High School, Allentown Central Catholic High School and Congresswoman Susan Wild, D-7th.

In one of the most poignant scenes, Morton asks a classmate, “Do you ever go about your day and all of a sudden, you get this overwhelming sadness? You can’t really wrap your head around it and deal with. It just sits there like something is missing out of your life ...”

Every so often, Morton has a flashback of Marcus bullying him. Marcus is portrayed by George Spann, who told The Press he hopes the film will help peers who are struggling to get help.

Spann’s message? “I would just hope they would realize they are not alone and ... they could approach [those involved] because they know they are invested in mental health and they are invested in the lives of others and care about a lot of people.”

“Everyone is struggling, everyone has their own problems, so I feel the movie touches on the fact it’s okay to feel this way,” Petrie said. “You’ll get through it, you’ll grow. You’ll not be the same person from high school forever.”

Morton feels the main message to be taken away by watching the movie is, “don’t be content with all the suffering you go through. You’ve got to fight through it ’cause there are no other options.

“And at the end of the day, you can sit back and not make anything happen, not achieve your goals or accomplish anything great or remarkable. I know so many people who have said they had goals and want to do something but just never did anything about them. They just came up with excuse after excuse. You need to take those excuses and run with them.”

Perseverance is key for Morton for personal growth and success.

Morton’s hope for the legacy of his movie in Salisbury is the main message of getting help if you are struggling will resonate with future SHS students, pointing to the effects of social media which everyone from students, parents and teachers are trying to stay on top of.

Petrie, Smarch and Spann all praised Morton’s work and dedication to bringing this film together and bringing out the best of them on the screen.

“It brought us all together,” is how Morton describes the strong bond between the four, as well as Gavin Berger, who portrayed Calvin and has since graduated.

If you are in a mental health crisis and need help, call 988 for help.