After getting pantsed for fighting with Sweety Swags, she steals her cousin’s phone and sends a photo of her vulva online to a social network in an attempt to look mature, backfiring heavily with her being ostracised, also causing a rift between her and the Cuties who kick her out, replaced with former member Yasmine. In the quest for online recognition, Amy decides to incorporate suggestive dance moves into the choreography. They do not hesitate to adopt revealing outfits against their older rivals, the Sweety Swags. Amy is fascinated by her disobedient neighbour Angelica's pre-teen twerking clique, the Cuties, which is in stark contrast to Mariam's Muslim customs. She is also bored with Islamic culture that her aunt seeks to impress on her. She is angered by her polygynous father, who is preparing to return with a second wife. Cases of review bombs and subscription cancellations surged, emboldened by the hashtag #CancelNetflix, though Netflix has defended the film.Īmy, an 11-year-old girl from Senegal, lives with her mother Mariam and two younger brothers, one of them named Ishmael, in an apartment one of Paris' poorest neighbourhoods. The film received polarizing reviews from audiences following its release on Netflix, due in part to sexually suggestive scenes involving the child actors. While receiving generally positive reviews from critics for its ambition and acting as well as receiving accolades, it became a subject of controversy, starting from Netflix's initial promotional poster that was widely considered inappropriate. It was released in France on 19 August 2020 by BAC Films and internationally on 9 September 2020 on Netflix. Ĭuties premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival on 23 January, where Doucouré won the Directing Award.

Principal photography took three months, with a psychologist assisting the child actresses throughout.

Casting took six months, with 700 girls being auditioned for the role of Amy.

The script later won an award at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. She said that it is intended to criticise the hypersexualisation of pre-adolescent girls, and that she logged over 18 months of research on the topic. The film's ensemble cast is led by Fathia Youssouf who portrays Amy, a Senegalese-French girl with a traditional Muslim upbringing who is caught between traditional Muslim values and Internet culture when she joins a twerking dance crew.ĭoucouré was inspired to write the script upon seeing a suggestive youth talent show one day, as well as from her experience as a Senegalese-French person. Cuties ( French: Mignonnes) is a 2020 French drama film written and directed by Maïmouna Doucouré in her feature directorial debut.

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