Are children being pushed prematurely into adulthood? Sophie Bissonnette’s
documentary Sexy inc. Our
Children Under Influence
–
Youth Version
analyzes the hypersexualization of our environment and its noxious
effects on young people. Psychologists, teachers and school nurses criticize
the unhealthy culture surrounding our children, where marketing and
advertising are targeting younger and younger audiences and bombarding them
with sexual and sexist images. These stereotypes treat girls of all ages as
sexual objects, and exercise a damaging the effect on their identities.
Because they see degrading images of sexuality on the Internet, some children
confuse sexual relations with pornography. Sexy inc. suggests
various ways of countering hypersexualization and the eroticization of
childhood and invites us to rally against this worrying phenomenon.
Ghyslain Raza, better known as the “Star Wars Kid,” breaks his silence to reflect on our hunger for content and the right to be forgotten in the digital age.
This smart documentary explores the intimidating terrain of girlhood by following three 12-year-olds over the period of one year. As these girls move from childhood to maturity, it's clear that peer pressure is an important influence, but as the films shows, the greatest influence in a young girl's life is family.
Filmmaker Victoria King's creative approach, including the use of "diary-cam" footage, not only follows the girls but allows them to question the world in their own voices. Ultimately, the film reveals the complexities of being 12, both satisfying our curiosity and inviting us to ask, What happens next?
In this short film, three youths draw on their own experiences to provide an essential guide to staying afloat while navigating the choppy waters of adolescence. It's a time when youth undergo big changes and assume new responsibilities, juggling school, family and friends. Throw in work, dating, exams, racist remarks and extracurricular activities, and it's no wonder teens get knocked off balance. Spoken word performer Kyra Shaughnessy and a diverse chorus of young voices provide running commentary, making XS Stress an insightful report from the teens of today.
Manivald, a fox, is turning 33. Overeducated, unemployed and generally uninspired, he lives with his overbearing, retired mother and spends his days learning piano while she makes his coffee and washes his socks. It is an easy life, but not a good one. Their unhealthy co-dependence is about to collapse when the washing machine breaks down and Toomas, a sexy and adventurous wolf repairman, arrives to fix it, and them.
In this short documentary, a succession of black and white photographs provides a gritty look at juvenile prostitution and at the young people, male and female, struggling to get off the streets. Highlighting the links between being sexually abused as a child, loss of self-esteem, and turning to the streets, the film quickly dispels the images of glamor and big money usually associated with prostitution, and shows the positive efforts of child-care workers to help juvenile prostitutes find a way out.
In this short documentary about autism, director Anna Barczewska examines the complex challenge of raising autistic children. Through the voice of Jan's devoted mother and the comments of specialists, the film offers an introduction to this neurological disorder that reduces one’s ability to communicate with the outside world.
This documentary presents a few individuals for whom the Internet has become a way to connect with like-minded souls in surprising ways: a cyber punk based on an anti-aircraft rig in the English Channel who operates a rogue Web server, a monk developing "wireless prayer technology," a "gamer" who re-creates himself in an online game, a retired couple living in an Internet-controlled seniors' complex and a divorcée who exchanges vows online with a man she's never met.
Blending fiction with documentary, this French feature by Jacques Godbout takes a critical look at Quebec youth in the 1960s. An exploration of first loves, the film focuses on the exploits of one teenager, Kid Sentiment, who shies away from tenderness because she's embarrassed. Featuring the music of two members of the band, The Sinners.
This short film is inspired by a stormy same-sex relationship in the Manawan community of the Atikamekw Nation, which led to a suicide.
Since 2004, Wapikoni Mobile has been giving Indigenous youth the opportunity to speak out using video and music. This short film was made with the guidance of the traveling Wapikoni Mobile studios and is part of the 2007 Selection—Wapikoni Mobile DVD.This short film made with the video camera on a cellphone is part of MobiDOCS: Confessions in a Digital Age. The director asks questions to the participants about their sexual experiences. Based upon the arcade game of the same name in which participants are required to either agree or disagree with the proposition "I've Never Had Sex...."
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