In 2012 (The Act of Killing), a very controversial documentary was made public. The film was about the mass massacre of Indonesian communists in 1965-1966. Before, the genocide was ignored by Indonesia and the world, and not only was it celebrated locally! Although some documents were made available to the public about the role of the Indonesian government, the United States and the United Kingdom in the genocide, in reality no one cared! The documentary created universal recognition of the crimes committed and once again shed light on what is forgotten. This sparked debate among Indonesians and the role of the United States was once again questioned. The film was nominated for an Oscar and won many of the world's prestigious film awards, but the most important effect was to revive this terrifying and forgotten part of history, to generate the need to hold those responsible accountable of their crimes. they committed, and opening conversations between psychologists and the public about the complex nature of mass murderers and their psychology. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay The act of killing is a clear example of how cinema and art can be used as proactive tools for change positive. It is proven in psychology that human decisions are largely driven by emotions. The revolutionary discovery made by neuroscientist Damasios clearly demonstrates this. Antonio Damasios analyzed patients with damaged areas of the brain responsible for coding emotions, who practically could not make decisions as simple as what to eat! This finding illustrates that logic and rationalization generally come after the emotional motive. Art deals with this aspect of human nature. . .EmotionsWe notice that people can see horrible news on television every day and are indifferent to it. But when they watch a film about the same event, well written and well acted, they will be moved and will no longer be indifferent, which will trigger the desire to act and do something. The life of the other is not only WATCHED. on current events, but rather FELT and lived. Art alleviates the numbing effect of data. Even documentary films are better than news! Because they give you the feeling of engagement and that you are part of the event being presented. This is why art is a vehicle for social change. Art preserves the collective memory of society, people can plagiarize historical facts, and the most powerful can always manipulate the way history is written and passed on to subsequent generations. But when it comes to art, art not only gives THE FACT about how people lived, but also about what it felt like to be there and experience that particular time and place. Art is not only the collective memory but also the collective consciousness of society, the voice of the voiceless, the expression of what they feel about the present moment. Graffiti and Street Art are a good representative of this. Graffiti, invented in 1968 as a means of expression, defender of personal and political opinions... has democratized art and made it accessible to all. He questioned what art is, how people communicate and how they express their political views. Street art has gone beyond the limits of the expected, used ART FOR GOOD and for a better future, art as a voice of the voiceless and as a means to change the rhetoric, and to comment on the ironies of the modern world of 'today.Berger Fée la rue The artist created a poster entitled (HOPE) highlightingfeaturing Obama. HOPE has become one of the most famous symbols of Obama's campaign and was recently used in Barak's official campaign for the presidential election. And the exceptional work of street artist JR on the RIO favelas created in this marginalized place gave a sense of pride to the residents. Another example is the Berlin Center for Political Beauty, which is a German artistic group that causes a lot of irritation in the public sphere. They use theater and political poetry to reintroduce sensitive topics into the public consciousness such as the Holocaust and the issue of immigration and refugees. Art, as we see in the examples above, creates awareness, expresses thoughts, and expresses the collective consciousness of the present moment. Art promotes the basic human need for self-expression. It is well known that art affects the fundamental sense of self, but this is also true in relation to society as a whole. People express themselves through art (painting, sculpture, music), this act of expression helps society confirm their identity and improve their self-esteem, which is very important when it comes to maintain the integrity, cohesion and unity of the group. This is why people complain about media politics, which only show the stories of the most powerful. And other people's stories and art do not have the opportunity to be expressed and exchanged with the rest of the world. This leads to one of the negative consequences of globalization, namely the marginalization of certain cultures, leading to the freezing of these cultures, and their art, traditions and particular way of life are no longer transferred to subsequent generations. From a broader perspective, this also leads to the generation of a one-dimensional globalized human being who is the same everywhere, demolishing the beauty of diversity! Cinema shapes identities and conceptions, which is why many criticisms have been leveled at it, particularly with regard to representation. women and people of color. The images consumed by popular culture influence the dominant discourse that circulates about life and about others. Feminists have long launched numerous battles against Hollywood and the film industry, arguing that cinema is one of the social institutions and represents one of the determinants of gender roles and expectations. In Hollywood, women are primarily portrayed in sexual ways and used to increase profits by manipulating human feelings and desires. Although women make up 37% of professors, they rarely achieve this level of representation in Hollywood. Professional women must fight against the public conception of them (being unhappy outside of academia, alone, and socially unacceptable). They always have to defend themselves, explain themselves and prove - every chance they get - that they have a family and they celebrate family life! Women of color have long suffered from stereotypes and generalizations in cinema. They are usually described as dependent, angry, loud, materialistic, uncivilized using cruel words and exaggerated body language, lacking self-control and vulgar. The famous stereotype for the ANGRY BLACK WOMAN or BLACK female dog. You can watch the film (Diary of a Mad Black Woman) in case of suspicion, or the title alone is enough I think! Even successful black women were not safe from stereotypes in the media, as they are typically portrayed in films as bitter and overachieving. , and narcissistic. These stereotypes have made life difficult for black women because they tryalways avoid judgment by suppressing their feelings and activating emotionless mode. This repression leads to mental health problems and life discomfort. And in general, black people as a race have suffered from being portrayed as drug dealers, addicts, violent, homeless, subway muggers, and bottoms. They are seen as athletes but never as academics or intellectuals. They are stupid and their intellectual abilities are questioned. This highlighted the importance of academia for young black people and motivated them to seek careers in sports and physically demanding jobs. These examples show that art shapes society not only in positive but also negative ways. Art and cinema have a considerable impact on my region. In Africa: Chinua Achebe the great Nigerian author and writer of the masterpiece Things are falling apart, the Guardian (the man who gave Africa a voice) has called! They said: "Achebe granted the religion, culture and domestic economy of daily Igbo life a level of intimacy and humanity that made their experience universal, boldly pushing the boundaries of perspective ". Things Fall Apart introduced readers to the continent, and many of the writers said it changed the way they saw and understood not only Africa but also the world. A lot of African writers got their chance after Achebe, and most importantly… things fell apart and repaired some damage thanks to European representation of Africans. In the Middle East and North Africa, Egyptian cinema and art have had a considerable impact on societies. Egypt not only has the largest population in the MENA region, but it also produces the largest amount of films, melodramas, music, television and comedies. It is seen as the Arab cultural power. Egyptian films are distributed and viewed throughout the MENA region. You can stop anyone randomly on the street and they will tell you about Adil Imam, Ahmed Zaki and Fatin Hmama, he may even recite some of their acting dialogues. Also on Egyptian television, one can never ignore how Layali AlHelmia, Abbas Alabyad Fe Alyom Alaswad and AlHaj Motwali have affected our lives and the way we perceive the world. Egypt was at the forefront of the revival of Arabic music in the 19th century and recent Arab pop music in the 70th. Egyptian arts and cinema made Arabs aware of political and social issues, these issues were discussed and analyzed through films. They represented the Arab and Islamic heritage in images that stick in the mind and are worth thousands of words. And looking at these works of art awakened the Arabs' sense of identity and their love of the country. In Sudan, theater has positively changed the collective consciousness, and when we talk about Sudanese theater, we cannot forget AlFadil Saeed, one of the pioneers in this field. AlFadil in the 1950s used his plays to influence the political scene in Sudan. He was an actor, director, producer and writer. Alfadil introduced a new way of artistic expression which is monologue, and using comedy, irony and sarcasm he conveyed strong and influential messages to the audience. Al Fadil traveled all over the country, from Halfa to Numili, and used the words and language of the layman, the power of irony and comedy to change the public atmosphere. Another example of the powerful effect of art in Sudanese society is the negative influence of ALHakamat. AlHakamat is a group of women who are local poets, they rhyme poems to encourage men to fight and engage in.