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Company managing director tells young people struggling with mental health to seek help
Luke Galbraith (21) was in his mid-teens and struggling with anxiety and negative thinking when he decided he no longer wanted to live.
It was only when he saw the impact of his suicide bid on his younger brother that he realised he had to get better and reached out for help.
His interest in film-making, sparked by an appearance as an extra on Game of Thrones, flourished as he went through the CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service) programme.
Luke signed up to Belfast Metropolitan College to study computer game development, visual effects and creative media production, the latter of which he completed in June.
Luke is the managing director of LDG Films (Picture by Peter Morrison)
While studying, he set up his own company LDGFilms, and in the space of a year has built up an impressive portfolio of clients including soul outfit Manukahunney, rapper Jun Tzu, Boyzlife and boxers Jamie Conlan, Luiz Alberto Lopez, Tyrone McKenna and Tommy McCarthy.
To coincide with International Men’s Day today, Luke spoke to Sunday Life to shine a spotlight on male mental health and to urge struggling young people to seek help.
He said he wanted to let others know the dark days would pass and that having a passion, interest or job they loved could give them something positive to focus on and a happy future to strive for.
“I was an extra on Game of Thrones when I was 13 and I just loved the amount of attention and detail that went into the production… the props, the costumes, the actors,” said Luke.
“I was really wowed by it all and decided it was what I wanted to do in the future.
“At school I took moving image arts as one of my GCSEs, but unfortunately I didn’t get a good pass because I was struggling with my mental health at the time.
“I had anxiety, no self-belief and cared too much about how others saw me. It’s not that I was being bullied, but I felt out of place, that I wasn’t part of the crowd on some social level, on a human level.”
It got to the point where Luke contemplated taking his own life, but seeing how upset his younger brother was by his actions, he decided to get help.
This was a huge turning point, and with the support of CAMHS and his family, Luke began to tackle the over-thinking and negative thoughts.
Around this time, his mum gave him a good piece of advice: start off with small steps and keep going every day.
Luke, who’d always been interested in gaming, signed up to study games development, followed by a course in visual effects and, finally, a two-year HND in creative media production.
The HND course reignited his interest in cinematography, something he’d lost when unwell.
Luke got himself a camera, began shooting shorts and promotional videos then set up his own business last year.
His first job was making a promotional film for the NI Cosmetic Medicine Awards last year, which led to him making new contacts and acquiring more bookings.
Luke has built up an impressive portfolio of clients. Picture credit: @dmk_visuals
Within a short space of time, he was shooting films for boxers and artists and picking up several nominations at the RTS NI Student Awards.
As LDGFilms continues to grow, Luke has ambitions to shoot feature films and hopes to create a hub for young people with little to no experience of working in the film and TV industry but who share his own passions and visions.
“The first thing I’d say is to get help. Be honest and open with people. If you’re imprisoned in your own mind, you need to break free,” he said.
“There is always someone out there who will listen to you and understand what you’re going through.
“Also, find something you love. That really helped me. Hard work and determination will get you there.”
Five years on from his mental health crisis, Luke has a thriving business, a supportive girlfriend and family and is surrounded by like-minded people who want to see him succeed.
He has come a long way from the days when his crippling anxiety and low self-esteem held him back and is now looking forward to an exciting future as a filmmaker.
“I met Jamie Dornan at a Hooked Belfast event and we got chatting,” he said.
“I said to him ‘One day I’m going to work with you’, and he said ‘Yes, you will’.
“I could never have imagined saying that even a few years ago, but it’s onwards and upwards from here.
“I feel very grateful and blessed.”
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