The streaming giant’s artwork was different from the poster issued to promote the film’s release in French cinmeas. Even Doucouré found it objectionable.

Maïmouna Doucouré won the best director award for Cuties at the Sundance Film Festival in January. Photo: Corbis via Getty Images
Netflix apologised, but the damage had been done. Thousands have taken to social media, where the hashtag #cancelnetflix topped Twitter’s trending list in the United States and Britain. Petitions on change.org have also been circulating, and the film has also been exploited by politicians in the run-up to the US elections.

Last week, a grand jury in the US state of Texas indicted Netflix for promoting lewd material through the drama.

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During a public forum this week, Netflix co-chief executive Ted Sarandos said the film had been “misunderstood”, and raised US First Amendment concerns, Variety reported . “It’s a little surprising in 2020 America that we’re having a discussion about censoring storytelling,” Sarandos said.

Still, Cuties has sparked important discussions on issues ranging from how young girls are portrayed in the entertainment industry to freedom of creative expression.

Hong Kong-based psychotherapist Gabrielle Tüscher says a key message of the film – and one that people should be discussing more – is the damaging impact the misuse of social media can have on the young and vulnerable.

Gabrielle Tüscher is a Hong Kong-based psychotherapist.

In the film, Amy rebels against her strict and conservative background and joins a dance troupe called Cuties, whose young members look to social media for inspiration for their sexualised choreography (scenes of girls twerking in skimpy outfits were also packaged in a misleading Netflix trailer).

“The film contains a number of uncomfortable scenes,” says Tüscher. “But if it is to be challenged for potential risks, then social media platforms also need to be addressed.

“The sad truth is that this film represents what children expose themselves to daily – and their peers have come to accept this as appropriate behaviour to covet – the effects of which we only see later when they do not have the tools to self-manage internal conflict.”

I wanted to open people’s eyes to what’s truly happening in schools and on social media, forcing them to confront images of young girls made up, dressed up and dancing suggestively to imitate their favourite pop icon
Cuties director Maïmouna Doucouré

In media interviews, Doucouré has stated that her intention behind the film was to raise concerns about the hypersexualisation of young girls and the pressure social media places on them.

“I wanted to open people’s eyes to what’s truly happening in schools and on social media, forcing them to confront images of young girls made up, dressed up and dancing suggestively to imitate their favourite pop icon. I wanted adults to spend 96 minutes seeing the world through the eyes of an 11-year-old girl, as she lives 24 hours a day. These scenes can be hard to watch but are no less true as a result,” she wrote in a Washington Post op-ed.

Tüscher says social media influencers can add to young girls’ anxieties and their devalued self-worth.

(From left) Fathia Youssuf, Esther Gohourou, director Doucouré, Myriam Hamma, Medina El Aidi and Ilanah Cami-Goursolas attend the Cuties premiere at the Angouleme French-Speaking Film Festival in Angouleme, France. Photo: Getty Images

“On platforms such as Instagram and TikTok, influencers share with younger audiences that it’s OK to behave like a 20-year-old, but these young girls are not emotionally ready for the potentially devastating consequences that come with ‘adulting up’,” she explains.

“Their bodies are changing and they are not ready for all the attention they might get, or are capable of coping emotionally. This places them at high risk of body dissatisfaction and the need for control to manage these feelings.”

Tüscher says sexual objectification can impact young girls in later life, leading to mental health and body-image issues, as well as eating disorders.

The film raises concerns about the pressure social media places on young girls today. Photo: Getty Images/Westend61

“Sexualised and sexually objectified girls can experience many negative cognitive and health consequences, such as difficulty with concentration, low self-esteem, reduced sexual health, depression, and eating disorders. This is an extremely vulnerable time for young girls in their physical and emotional development.”

Clifton Emery, associate professor of social work at the University of Hong Kong, says it’s crucial that parents closely monitor what their children watch and do online.

“It is also essential that parents foster open communication with their children about the potential danger in the on- and offline environments,” he says. “Will I let my adolescent daughter watch the film? I will need to see the film first before I decide that.”