Neoliberalism & The Danger it Poses to Society

In class this week, we analyzed the terms neo-feminism and neo-liberalism. Neo-liberalism is defined as a political philosophy that advocates support for free trade and open markets and increasing the role of private sector in a modern society. 

On December 14^th of last year, a man went on a killing spree in Newtown, killing 26 people, including 20 children. For an article on The Week, Neil Clark explains that there will be more examples of killing sprees, such as the one in Newtown and in Britain recently due to the fast-paced changes in a neo-liberal United Kingdom. “The answer is that we've Americanised our economy, and consequently are paying a very high social cost.”

Henry Giroux, author of “Youth and the Politics of Disposability in Dark Times” argued in a recent article that the rise of financial meltdown presents a problem for the youth. Giroux defines neoliberalism as; “the latest stage of predatory capitalism [and a] part of a broader project of restoring class power and consolidating the rapid concentration of capital.”

One of the important questions to ask when considering commercial films, national culture and its relationship with neo-liberalism is if there are any benefits. One of them can be the film industry in Argentina. The country’s government is characterized by neo-liberal economic reform that which has benefited greatly for its film industry. “The film industry in Argentina has witnessed a recent `boom' in commercial blockbuster movies that is bringing audiences back to see national films. These high budget productions are produced in part by large television channels that are utilizing state subsidies for these projects. While this translates into healthy growth for the film industry, it is transforming the character of national film production from a cultural project to a commercial product.” (Media, Culture & Society)

On the other hand, it seems to defeat the purpose of neoliberalism if the government benefits. In an article in The Guardian entitled: “Our economic ruin means freedom for the super-rich”, George Monbiot explains:  “Neoliberals claim that we are best served by maximising market freedom and minimising the role of the state. The free market, left to its own devices, will deliver efficiency, choice and prosperity.” Therefore, the role of the government should not be so influential in the industry as private enterprises.

I think it's important to note that the private sector, especially in concerns to films is very influential. Apart from the economy, it's also important to note that neo-liberalism has seeped into films and education.

Picture Credit

Doha Tribeca Film Festival

The third Doha Tribeca Film Festival finally began this October after a long highly anticipated wait by people living in Doha. The festival usually goes on for about five days and showcases films and holds various events for each day. The whole purpose of bringing the Tribeca fIlm Festival to Qatar is to introduce people to the film culture by cultural diffusion. The festival brings together directors and actors from both the western and middle-eastern parts of the world, allowing the people of Qatar to learn from both sides and potentially inspires them to make their own films. The introduction of Doha Tribeca Film Festival was to encourage its citizens to start their own projects while receiving support from Doha Film Institute. The films are screened in Katara and at the city center.

This year there were many films that were based in the Middle East but a lot of them had western actors as part of the cast. There has been a lot of criticism around these films, such as Black Gold, as people believe the Middle East is not being portrayed in the correct way and that the only reason some of the films had western actors was to secure its distribution in the western and European parts of the world.

A very recent incident that occurred a few days ago at the red carpet has stirred quite some controversy. The Egyptian actor Omar Sharif was caught on camera slapping a woman while he was posing for pictures on the red carpet.

He broke social norms when he did that and now he is receiving negative sanctions for his behavior, as they are many articles being written about the incident criticizing his actions. In the actual video taken, it is unclear whether the actor actually slapped the woman or not, but he did appear quite rude when he was talking to her as he basically called her stupid when he said, “put something in your brain” in Arabic. After he finished posing for his solo pictures he calls over the woman and takes a picture with her. The woman did not look the least bit annoyed or angry as she smiles and takes the picture with him with without causing a scene. Despite the fact there have been some negative occurrences at the festival, it still remains a vital medium to transfer film culture into the Arab world.