Directors Felix Herngren and Ruben Östlund were invited to SVT's Morgonstudion to talk about the streaming giants” algorithms. But the interview quickly took an unexpected turn when a presenter criticized their film tips for being created by ”white men".
During Wednesday's broadcast, he said Felix Herngren and Ruben Östlund about a new digital platform where human recommendations will outweigh algorithmic control. When the guests started to recommend their favorite films and series, they were suddenly interrupted by the host.
– As for your other tips, you only mention movies and series directed by white men. That is Christopher Nolan, Quentin Tarantino and David Lynch, she said.
The comment created a noticeably stiff atmosphere in the studio.
Refused to apologize
Östlund did not shy away from the criticism but responded directly:
- Then it's perfect that you join and make your list with your favorite female directors.
Herngren also spoke out against film choices being judged by skin color or gender.
- I don't usually look for what white men have done and then recommend them, but it's movies I like. Unfortunately, I hardly know myself who has directed things.
The duo did not apologize for their preferences or for recommending films by directors who happen to be white men. Instead, they insisted that quality and personal judgment should be more important than identity politics.
The reactions afterwards
The clip has since been widely circulated on social media, with many reacting to the fact that the public service focused on the directors' skin color instead of the content of the films. Critics say the incident shows how identity politics is increasingly influencing cultural coverage in mainstream media.
At the same time, several commentators highlight Herngren and Östlund's new platform as an attempt to reduce the control of big companies and algorithms over people's cultural choices - and instead give the power back to the viewers themselves.
SVT in a nutshell. Why would they distance themselves from white men? The question was about which series / movies they thought were best. Nothing else.
Svt has pretty much only pk-patrash that employees are completely useless to watch.
Agreed.
I know Felix H. ”Sweet Moses” what he has aged....I can tell you that F H is the same in private as in many movies...elusive, you can't get a handle on him, feels generally untrustworthy and sneaky.