#19 What Hollywood Won't tell you about Female Objectification?

After watching the Girls on Film videos, I decided to continue finding relevant content on youtube that could be useful to me. I came across a video titled 'What Hollywood Won't Tell You About Female Objectification,' which turned out to be an ad for an application. However, it turned out to be full of content and information about the differences in treatment between men and women in Hollywood.

It opens with how Hollywood argues nudity is a form of art. However, why are women 3x more likely to be nude in a film? (The Report on the Status of Women and Girls in California, 2016). In 'Game of Thrones' 6x as much (Internal Study, 2017). Producers know and utilise the concept that sex sells, so they use women's naked bodies as advertisements, turning them into sex objects. You can witness this in movie posters that show a woman's body but not her face, which refers to my previous posts where I collected images that only show women's legs or torso's. Every time Hollywood produces images suggesting women are sex objects, the audience reads that message, which can affect how women are perceived.

Hollywood Turns Women Into Sex Objects.

Note. Hollywood Turns Women Into Sex Objects. (2017, June 14).

VidAngel goes on to argue that Hollywood makes money by exploiting pornographic images of women. As evidence, they include a quote from Neil Marshall, a director from Game of Thrones, discussing what one producer said on an Empire podcast.

"This particular Exec, like, took me to one side and said, 'Look, I represent the pervert side of the audience. Ok? Everybody else is the serious drama side. I represent the perv side of the audience, and I want full frontal nudity in this scene,' so you go ahead and do it."

They discuss the issues with children viewing certain scenes, which is where VidAngel began to pitch their product. However, some of the statistics they use may be useful. For example, by 18, the average child has seen 16000 murders in movies or TV ("Psychiatric Effects of Media Violence" American Psychological Association, 1998) and that children who witness these scenes normalise the content. The same could be said for them witnesses hyper-sexualised and objectified images of women.

Sources Regarding Effects of Viewing Certain Content - Image 1.

Note. Hollywood Turns Women Into Sex Objects. (2017, June 14).

Sources Regarding Effects of Viewing Certain Content - Image 2.

Note. Hollywood Turns Women Into Sex Objects. (2017, June 14).

Multiple studies link violent media consumption to increased aggression, including later criminal activity and spousal abuse. Hollywood mixes violent acts with sex in explicit scenes of rape as well as scenes where the 'good guy' forces himself upon a woman, which happens in films franchises such as James Bond. These scenes imply to children no means yes, and that consent is optional.

Hollywood as an industry has serious issues with sexual harassment, sexual assault and child sexual abuse. Stories about these cases have come to light post-Harvey Weinstein.

Bibliography

Hollywood Turns Women Into Sex Objects. (2017, June 14). [Screenshot]. https://youtube.com/watch?v=LqD-ULQ_bl4&ab_channel=VidAngel

Sources Regarding Effects of Viewing Certain Content - Image 1. (2017, June 14). [Screenshot]. https://youtube.com/watch?v=LqD-ULQ_bl4&ab_channel=VidAngel

Sources Regarding Effects of Viewing Certain Content - Image 2. (2017, June 14). [Screenshot]. https://youtube.com/watch?v=LqD-ULQ_bl4&ab_channel=VidAngel

Vid Angel. (2017, June 14). What Hollywood Won’t Tell You About Female Objectification [Video]. YouTube. https://youtube.com/watch?v=LqD-ULQ_bl4&ab_channel=VidAngel