HELP! I need some feedback on Films to show students in Gender & Pop Culture!

Right now, I have a short list of films. My collection of movies is getting pretty dated (as far as the Hollywood ones go!) and I don't want to show all documentaries! However, I'm actually thinking of replacing one movie with a documentary and would appreciate suggestions based on the following (additions/omissions/etc)

Watch: The September Issue        (90 minutes long)        
The September Issue Documentary Website
(a documentary on Vogue's editor-- which seems really quite interesting for this course- this documentary was commercially released to the public) instead of:
Gia      (126 minutes Long)     
Gia (the version I already own) 1998
 (the fictionalized story of Gia Carangi's tragically short life as "America's first supermodel" starring Angelina Jolie)

Meet the Joneses        (96 minutes long)      
Meet the Joneses Film Website
(fiction, but relevant to consumption, advertising, capitalism, and consumerism) but I have no idea when it will be released on DVD! Anyone know the date?

I could replace Meet the Joneses with:

Consuming Kids: the commercialization of childhood  (67 minutes long)
Consuming Kids: the commercialization of childhood on MEF's website
(a MEF Documentary-- but specifically related to consumption, advertising and childhood--which could be problematic because Maymester is a 3-week summer session, and Summer Session B is 5 weeks long--which means the length of the film could be too much to dedicate to a narrow subject area).

The Codes of Gender: Identity and Performance in Pop Culture (73 minutes long)
The Codes of Gender: Identity and Performance in Pop Culture on MEF's website
The library has it, and it may work well as one of the first films in the course (due to it's focus on gender performativity and it's reproduction through popular culture) when we cover a few of the schools of thought related to theories of sex and gender. 

Killing Us Softly 3       (34 minutes long)    
Killing Us Softly 3 on MEF's Website

This film has been a staple of mine since I started teaching Gender & Pop Culture during the spring of 2007.  I was almost going to omit it because it appears beyond dated to my students.  Then on MEF's website (mediaed.org), I spotted:  

Killing Us Softly 4      (45 minutes long)      
Killing Us Softly 4 on MEF's Webiste
This edition was produced in 2010... but TCNJ's library doesn't own it!!! NOOOOO!!!
Surprise!

Beauty Mark: Body Image & the Race for Perfection     (50 minutes long) 
Beauty Mark: Body Image & the Race for Perfection on MEF's website
However, the library actually has Beauty Mark (another MEF production), which might be a good fit where I'd ordinarily use Killing Us Softly

Clearly we can't watch films for the entire 3-weeks (or 5 weeks in the case of summer session B), but narrowing down the list further is tough! 

Ideas? Thanks!!!

Teaching Maymester- Gender & Pop Culture Blogs 4 credits in under 3 weeks @ TCNJ

I'll be the first to admit my uncertainty in my first experience at teaching a 4 credit course (that I usually have 16 weeks to cover the material in a typical semester) in under three weeks!

I have consolidated my syllabus, added a new book (what was I thinking!?!?!) and have all 20 of the "Maymester" (TCNJ's name for this 3 week summer session that precedes the 5-week sessions during June, July, & August) students blogging!

Am I nuts...well...don't answer that if you know me ;o)

So, here are the "Maymester" bloggers:

"Maymester" Bloggers: Summer 2008

• Pop Culture and Why It Pops
• Sarah Lauren
• Sima's Pop Culture Blog
• Ashley
• Jillian's Pop Culture Blog
• Jackie's Pop Culture Blog
• Kelly's Gender in Media Blog
• Dana's Blog
• Mike's Gender Pop Culture Blog
• Whatev is Whaev
• Melissa's Gender & Pop Culture Blog
• Danny Boy's Blog
• Tracey's Gender and Pop Culture Blog
• Erin's Gender & Pop Culture Blog
• Juliana's Pop Culture Blog
• Rob's Gender & Pop Culture Blog
• Kristin's Blog
• Brianna's Pop Culture Blog
• lisa's blog **
• Dawn's Gender & Pop Culture Blog
  

Gender & Pop Culture @ TCNJ
Women's & Gender Studies Program WGS-220

• Blogging in College: Gender & Pop Culture's Blog Project Home
• Gender & Pop Culture's Website
• The Professor's Page
  
• Our Guest Contributors
• Class Notes

Gender Ads.Com: An incredibly thorough examination of gender issues in advertising/marketing

I frequently use this blog for acumulating info for current and future sections of Gender and Pop Culture (sort of like my own social bookmarking service).

Because my "real" social bookmark accounts (i.e. clipmarks.com and stumbleupon.com) resemble my blog, Defying Gravitas far more than the Women's & Gender Studies/Feminist content of the course for which I am trying to 'not forget' information I've found :o)...

Back to my original reason for posting...

I found GenderAds.com through XY.com (a site devoted to the study of men, masculinities, and gender from a feminist perspective) and because the paragraph that precedes the quoted material (see below, under link to GenderAds.com), specifically references the National Women's Studies Association (NWSA), I read through the site author's work and it's relevant to my course, quite comprehensive and well done (though hasn't been updated for over a year).

Gender Ads.Com:
"Why This Project addresses the reasons behind the formation of the site. How to Read Ads is an overview of some of the major approaches to the analysis of advertising, including semiotic analyses. Constructions of Gender is a representation of some of the major associations of gender and advertising, and is a good place to begin your study of the topics. Side by Side also offers an introductory approach to the subject, and I have collected side by side comparisons of men and women from major spreads in magazines. Controversy features some of the criticisms of the project that have been provided by viewers and students. Ambiguity addresses the idea that advertising, because of its ambiguous visual and literary messages, is difficult to interpret. Gender Landscape is a study that involves the public displays of billboard advertising, and it makes the point that gender ads are not limited to the “private” screens of print media. The Hall of Shame feature presents some of the most troubling images from the archive, but, in reality, any number of images could be placed on that page. How to Reference is a brief description of how you can reference or link to this site for research purposes."


1. BACKGROUND
What's New?
Why This Project?
How To Read Ads
Constructions
Side By Side
Controversy
Ambiguity
Gender Landscape
Hall of Shame
How to Reference
Comments
Links to This Site

2. FEMALES IN ADS
Roles
Strippers
Normalized Women
Exotics, General
Exotics, WOC
Exotics, Surreal
Feminine As Difficult
As Dolls
As Naggers
Body As Tool
Nymphomania
As Stupid
Consumers
As Nature
Bodies Only
Politics
As Violent
Faux Power
Female Masculinity

3. MALES IN ADS
Males, General
Male Sex
Violence Ag. Males
Males As Culture
Phallic
Male Fantasies
Normalized Males
As Stupid
Male Heroes
Men, In Control
Male Objects

4. TOGETHER IN ADS
Competition
Marriage
Violence
Death
Lesbians
Gay Men
Dual Objectified
Hetero Relations
Sex and Ads
Sexual Violence

5. OBJECTIFICATION
Body Parts I
Body Parts II
No Subject
Sex Object
Dehumanized
As Literal Object
No Product Connection

6. VISUAL MEANS
The Gaze
Wetness
Reductionism
Landscapes
Captured/Controlled
Linguistic Violence
Fear
Legs as Framing
Written On
Contorted

7. SPECIAL FEATURES
Billboards
A&F
Rejected Ads
Video Games
Men's Magazines
Man Show
TV Commercials
Progressive Ads
Mock Ads
UK Gender

8. OTHER TROPES
Kids and Ads
Ageism
Racism
Military Ads
Global Ads
Values Ads
Social Class Ads
Miscellaneous Ads

9. RESOURCES
Bibliography
Links
Taking Action
Educator Resources

Inserted from <http://www.genderads.com/>

Much ado about Nothing- the "nothing" is now a newsworthy topic in its own right?

Much ado about Nothing- the "nothing" is now a newsworthy topic in its own right?

Who hasn't pointed out the lack of fame-producing credentials that are absent from Hilton's celeb-cred-lacking resume...

Yet, the coverage continues...even when the coverage is on the fact that they are covering an individual whose newsworthy status is beyond the reporters' comprehension (which, today, doesn't exactly illuminate the state of Paris moreso than it does illuminate the absurdity of the reporters covering her "celebutante status").

If anything Paris is a great lens into the US (dare I say it) populations great love of demonizing that which they oh, so desparately desire, yet simultaneously deplore, and -(somewhere...lest you be fooled by the "Sweet 16-ers" on MTV...lurks the reality-stinging stuff that no TV shows would dare be made of ... :oP ...that the voyeur will never be her/his subject...there is no "Paris" rung on the career ladder (or the full-o-shit American Dream either) yet, they still keep covering her...


With news outlets and the paparazzi dutifully assembled outside of the L.A. County Correctional Facility in Lynwood, California, the unintentional queen of all media Paris Hilton made her grand exit in front of a live, international television audience early Tuesday morning.If history so chooses to refer the socialite's exodus as a circus, then Hilton is the undisputed ringmaster -- leaving those of us in the media looking like clowns. Seriously.I'm pretty sure Hilton is the only inmate that has ever been released from prison with such a spectacle. Sashaying down the walkway as if it were a red carpet, Hilton gave high-fives to the gathered crowd and ran into the arms of her mother, who gave her what would have been a heartwarming hug if she had bothered to actually get out of the SUV she was riding in. No matter. The crowd ate it up. Photographers, both still and video, bum-rushed the vehicle to try and get a closer look.

Disney's Prepackaged Weddings from: The Fix | Salon Arts & Entertainment

The Fix | Salon Arts & Entertainment:
Disney weddingsFairy-tale weddings for all:
Gay marriage is OK in the Magic Kingdom -- gay couples can now participate in Disney's popular Fairy Tale Weddings program. Disney Parks and Resorts spokesman Donn Walker says the move to include gay couples 'is consistent with our policy of creating a welcoming, respectful and inclusive environment for all of our guests.' Until recently, Disney allowed gay couples to organize their own ceremonies at its resorts, but didn't allow them to buy the Fairy Tale Wedding packages, which start at $8,000 and include a wedding planner, the ceremony, food and beverages, flowers and table decorations. The 'Lavish Wedding' option includes a ride to the ceremony in a Cinderella coach, costumed trumpeters heralding the couple's arrival, and attendance by Mickey and Minnie Mouse characters dressed in formal attire. But Disney has predictably incurred the wrath of religious conservatives, including the Southern Baptist Convention, which lifted an eight-year boycott of Disney -- for things like giving health benefits to same-sex partners of employees -- in 2005. (Fox News)"

The look of the future: Be a visionary, the time for doll face: NOW

Go green, or get the look of the future-perhaps you want to join the mineral movement? Whether you're on the fringe and in the glow,Or in need of Bronzers 2.0.You too can have the expert edge for your own quest for futurist beauty TodayLike duh...when else would we want it, the future? (See pgs 1-36 from Sephora's Spring 2007 catalogue for the fun phrases--almost the entire description was from this source, used to describe the video Doll Face) click the title/link to see this video from adbusters...it's really amazing!
read more | digg story