[6] She also based it on her own experience with the contrast of the cultures of France and Senegal. I'm eager to see their reaction when they realise that we're both on the same side of this fight against young children's hypersexualisation. Cuties. The Parents Television Council (PTC) requested that Netflix remove the film entirely, and a Change.org petition calling for people to cancel their Netflix subscription gathered more than 600,000 signatures. In the American promotional poster ahead of the Netflix release, Amy and her "Cuties" are seen wearing incredibly short and tight shorts and crop tops and posing in mature positions that have been deemed sexual. More than 30,000 people have signed a petition asking Netflix to remove “Cuties,” a movie they claim sexualizes children. [59] The French directors guild criticised the backlash against the film, calling it a "grave attack on freedom of creation" being fueled by "the most conservative of Americans. It was released in France on 19 August by and internationally on 9 September on Netflix. "[108], This article is about the film. Amy's mother intervenes by telling her to leave her daughter alone and then hugs her to reassure her. "[53], The National Center on Sexual Exploitation, a conservative religious[54][55] organisation, condemned Netflix for giving a film "that has permitted the sexual exploitation of children" a platform and called for the company to cut the "sexually-exploitative scenes or stop hosting this film at all". Many accused Netflix of misrepresenting the French film “Cutie” and hypersexualizing children in its recent promotions for it. The largely well-received French-language pic won the … And Netflix’s interpretation of the movie wasn’t much better. Rumble — Netflix recently announced the release of "Cuties," a film that it described as being about an 11-year-old girl joining a twerking dance crew. It revolves around a group of teen girls who form a twerking dance group called the "Cuties". Netflix issued an apology on Thursday for its marketing of “Cuties,” a French film that has been criticized as sexualizing underage girls. The French film has been blasted for "sexualising girls". The Cuties also banned her from performing with them at the dance contest, and replaced her with former member Yasmine. ", In a statement, Netflix said: "This was not an accurate representation of the film so the image and description has been updated.". [69], U.S. It was released internationally on Netflix on 9 September 2020. A French film called ‘Mignonnes’ or ‘Cuties’ has caused a bit of controversy. at Alex Jones in awkward interview, Coleen Nolan thought dad didn’t love her as he abused sister not her, ©News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. She also stated that she worked with a child psychologist during filming. Cuties tells the story of an 11-year-old girl who joins a "twerking dance squad". She pushes Yasmine into a canal, so the Cuties have no choice but to allow her to dance with them. And the children just imitate what they see, trying to achieve the same result without understanding the meaning, and yeah, it's dangerous. Netflix’s marketing led to a Change.org petition urging the streaming giant to remove the title from its upcoming slate. "[79], On 23 September 2020, Netflix was indicted by a grand jury in Tyler County, Texas, on a charge that it "depicts the lewd exhibition of the genitals or pubic area of a clothed or partially clothed child who was younger than 18 years of age ... and has no serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value. "[33][34][35] The new poster depicts the 11-year-old girls wearing panties and bras over their clothing while celebrating. The highly suggestive dance routine shocks the audience. Amy implores her mother to allow Amy to not attend the wedding, in order to demonstrate her disapproval. I was also lucky that these girls' parents were also activists, so we were all on the same side. In the Cuties trailer, which was posted on the official Netflix YouTube account on August 18, Amy - who is portrayed by 11-year-old newcomer Fathia Youssouf - … She is also bored with salah and Islamic culture in general that her aunt seeks to impress on her. Any child with a telephone can find these images on social media these days." Maybe", "Missouri senator asks Netflix to answer questions about its controversial "Cuties" film and marketing campaign", "Sen. Lee calls on Netflix CEO to remove film 'Cuties' from its service", "Democrat Tulsi Gabbard says Netflix is complicit in child sex trafficking for "child porn" film "Cuties, "Ted Cruz Calls for Justice Department to Investigate Netflix Over 'Cuties' Child Porn Claims", "Facing backlash, Netflix defends 'Cuties' as 'social commentary' against sexualizing young girls", "Nancy Pelosi's daughter Christine says Netflix should 'cancel' 'Cuties': 'Apologize, work with experts to heal your harm, "Lawmakers demand Netflix probe over controversial film "Cuties, "Netflix's 'Cuties' becomes target of politicized backlash", "State attorneys general ask Netflix to pull controversial 'Cuties' as director defends 'feminist' film", "Arizona: A Donald Trump Jr. event is full of people and conspiracy theories", "Netflix indicted in Texas over 'lewd' depiction of children in 'Cuties, "Netflix Indicted in Texas for 'Lewd' Content in 'Cuties, "Texas politicians fueled criticism of "Cuties." Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri informally invited Netflix to discuss the film "before Congress" in a tweet. TorrentFreak said the cluster of copyright claims by Netflix was unusual. [98][99] Clarisse Fabre of Le Monde praised the film and said that it avoids judging the sexualised dances of the girls. Netflix has apologised and changed a movie poster after tens of thousands signed a petition to have a film removed. This sexualization of young girls rightfully caused an outrage, which prompted Netflix to apologize and change the description of "Cuties," but the company didn't address the real problem: the content itself. To see all content on The Sun, please use the Site Map. [43] She claimed that things happened fairly quickly (after delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic); she was focusing solely on the film's theatrical release in France, and at the time was not consulted about the controversial poster unveiled by Netflix. She stated while working on the film, "I explained to them everything I was doing and the research that I had done before I wrote this story. The film was announced by filmmaker Maïmouna Doucouré as her feature debut directorial venture. [78][49] Donald Trump Jr., son of President Donald Trump, also condemned the film in a campaign event in Arizona saying "You know what the left is doing? [42], In an interview with Deadline Hollywood, Maïmouna Doucouré stated that she received numerous death threats and personal attacks following the backlash on social media. Netflix altered the film's synopsis, which angered viewers as the original wording on Twitter read: "Amy, 11, becomes fascinated with a twerking dance crew. The award-winning film Mignonnes/Cuties premiered Sundance and follows the story of an 11-year-old girl who joins a dance group. ", It now reads: "Eleven-year-old Amy starts to revel against her conservative family’s traditions when she becomes fascinated with a free-spirited dance crew. [16][17] Originally set for a theatrical release in France on 1 April 2020, the film was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France,[18] and was eventually released on 19 August 2020 by BAC Films. [94], Monica Castillo of RogerEbert.com gave the film four out of four stars, stating that "Cuties is a difficult and challenging film, pushing the idea of 'depiction does not equal endorsement' to its limit. [77] The state attorneys general of Ohio, Florida, Louisiana, and Texas have also written a letter to Netflix asking for removal of the film. Following a humiliation at school, Amy sends a photo of her vulva online, causing her to be ostracised. With Fathia Youssouf, Médina El Aidi-Azouni, Esther Gohourou, Ilanah Cami-Goursolas. [40] In September 2020, Pakistani actor Hamza Ali Abbasi signed one of the petitions and demanded Netflix cancel their planned release of the film. The film stars Fathia Youssouf, Médina El Aidi-Azouni, Esther Gohourou, Ilanah Cami-Goursolas and Maïmouna Gueye. "[95] In a review for IndieWire, Kate Erbland wrote, "Although Doucouré steeps Cuties in emotion and experience, she abandons its grace to make crazier gestures. Netflix quickly apologized for the poster, admitting that it was not representative of the film. "Cuties," the award-winning French film met with outcry for its provocative promotional poster, has arrived on Netflix. [107], Fionnuala Halligan of Screen Daily, however, commented on the close-up minor shots: "Doucouré seems to want to provoke censure, but fails precisely because she's trying so hard." It was not OK, nor was it representative of this French film which won an award at Sundance.” They also changed the cover art and description. We’ve now updated the pictures and description.” Cuties, originally called Mignonnes, is a coming of age story from French-Senegalese filmmaker Maïmouna Doucouré about Amy, 11, wants to … Netflix is being accused of sexualizing children with its promotion of the upcoming French film 'Cuties,' which centres on an 11-year-old girl who joins a 'twerking' dance troupe. Netflix issued an apology in response to the controversy over ‘Cuties,” and changed the poster for the movie and its film description. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click this link: thesun.co.uk/editorial-complaints/, Comments are subject to our community guidelines, which can be viewed, Cuties is a Netflix film that is causing controversy, Netflix has been heavily criticised for showing new French film Cuties, with the US poster being slammed by some, Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO), New on Netflix: The best series and films. [2] She rose to prominence with her 2016 short film Maman(s), which was selected and premiered in over two hundred film festivals, and won around sixty awards in several international film festivals. The French-language movie originally titled Mignonnes is … [4] Doucouré says her inspiration for the film was a talent show in Paris that she happened to see. "[85] The National Society of Film Critics also spoke out against the indictment, calling it "utterly baseless" and "absurd. Some of the reviews claim it’s a “commentary” on the sexualization of children but this is the poster. [38][39] Netflix removed the film from its catalogue in Turkey two days before its release.