Micromachisms in the Mexican cinema of the 21st century

Abstract

This work aims to conduct research on how machism has affected the representation of women in contemporary Mexican cinema and how this relates to the portrayal of women in current society. With a desire to become future filmmakers, we seek to understand how female representation has been within this type of content and how it influences the audiences who regularly watch these kinds of films. To do this, two fea- ture films were analyzed, one directed by a woman (La Prima, 2018) and one by a man (Las Niñas Bien, 2018). The study determined that both directors have a different perception of women and represent them through their works. In the first film, there is language with micro-machismo traits aimed at adding humor to the plot, while in the second, they are used in a justified manner to provide context for why certain events occur in the film. This results in commercial cinema depicting these actions for entertainment, while independent cinema uses them to delve deeper into the themes presented. Direc- tors represent women based on their knowledge and beliefs about what they perceive makes a woman.