The power of media is one of if not the most powerful tools in the present world. Everyone here today at the Media Matters Conference I ask you to reflect upon Facebook. This single yet powerful means of media alone, allows us to connect with friends, interact on online chats, donate to causes around the world, and most importantly express ourselves and our opinions. This incredibly influential source can be utilized in the present world to completely eradicate both racism and sexism. Hidden Figures a 2016 Docudrama, directed by Theodore Melfi, is the story of NASA in the space race, more directly the three Afro-American women that played a vital role in the operation. In our ever-changing world that strives for equality; gender disempowerment along with racial behavior must be abolished, therefore, the ideology of white male superiority needs to change. Three fundamental scenes from Hidden Figures emphasize how these women were persistently marginalized throughout the entirety of the film.
Scene 1:
This first scene is essential in positioning the audience to be aware of both the racial and gender disempowerment that the women received. The three Afro-American computers, as they are known, are first introduced when they are broken down on the side of the road. Moments later the ladies are struck with uncertainty as a police officer approaches their vehicle. During this time Mary utters the words, “There’s no crime in being a Negro.” This automatically sets the tone of the film and foreshadows how the ladies will ultimately be treated throughout the remainder of Hidden Figures. Several techniques are used by Melfi to assist in depicting the officer as a figure of authority over the women. The use of low to high camera angles is carefully chosen as it makes the subject of the shot, in this case, the officer, look strong. Similarly, the body language of the officer to that of the women is quite telling. The officer strolls over with one hand on his baton to further intimidate the ladies. Meanwhile, the women are aligned, hunched over, and looking at the ground awaiting to be addressed. These specifically thought-out techniques are included to highlight the superiority of white males. The same racist and sexist ways are still present in our world today. Through the use of the power of the media, this appalling behavior mustn't continue. This scene, however, isn’t the only extract from the film which depicts gender disempowerment along with poor racial behavior towards women.
Be more persuasive- we mustn't let this appalling behavior continue
Scene 2:
A second scene is used in the film to further imprint the effects of gender and racist behavior toward the computers in the audience’s mind. This is when Ms. Mitchell walks with Katherine taking her to her new role at NASA. Almost the second she walks through the doors, a white collard male worker hurryingly strolls past, giving her a rubbish bin and telling her, “this wasn't emptied last night.” This provides a very clear message to the audience of the stereotyping that is present in the film and still exists today. Melfi uses a different variation of film techniques in this scene to again position the audience in a certain way. An effective pan shot is utilized to illustrate the disbelief of the white male workers as Katherine walks through the office. Additionally, the body language of the white workers again reinforces the skepticism of which Melfi wants the audience to be well aware. Through these techniques, it is clear how Katherine is being belittled by the stronger figures in society. From this scene, we can take away how Katherine was made to feel like an outsider in her own country, even though she was trying to help the nation succeed on a global scale. It reinforces the significance of the stand that we as a community need to take regarding our mindsets toward sexism and racism.
Scene 3:
This final extract from the film, additionally demonstrates how Melfi uses a scene to illustrate to the audience the racist and sexist ways of society. This scene begins with Mr. Harrison asking Katherine where she goes for forty minutes a day. Then, Katherine loses it. As she frustratingly explains her predicament the room becomes silent. She lists off all the regulations and rules she has to live her life by, just because of the color of her skin. Specific techniques are again used by Melfi to present Katherine as a less significant member of society. Soft focus is applied to the male workers in the background whilst Katherine is in focus. This is done so the audience puts its main focus on Katherine, whilst still acknowledging the workers intensively listening in the background. This scene depicts how many if not all of the white males at NASA, first saw her as a black woman and saw her only as a person and a co-worker secondarily. The scene also points to the fact that racial and sexist discrimination doesn't just affect individuals; it damages social progress. This also brings to life that if America wasn’t so busy screwing over black people like Katherine, she would’ve had more time to work on her calculations furthering America’s development in the space race. This extract is a key example of why racism and sexism are still present in the twenty-first century and need to be destroyed.
Conclusion:
Through the medium of film, Melfi raises awareness of the harmful implications of unfair power distribution; he also depicts these disempowered groups as tremendously significant to human progress. When the film was set, women were considered not as competitive and not as strong as men. Furthermore, the black race was regarded as the less superior race to the white. These statements to some degree are undoubtedly still present in the world today. This is why through various means of the media, we as a collective group need to take a stand in eliminating stereotypes and abysmal attitudes. Now finally what I ask of you is three things. I ask you to challenge racism amongst your mates. Challenge racism within your community. And challenge racism throughout the world.