| Pink Ribbons, Inc. | |
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| Directed by | Léa Pool |
| Written by | Patricia Kearns Nancy Guerin Léa Pool |
| Based on | Pink Ribbons, Inc: Breast Cancer and the Politics of Philanthropy by Samantha King |
| Produced by | Ravida Din |
| Cinematography | Daniel Jobin Sylvaine Dufaux Nathalie Moliavko-Visotzky |
| Edited by | Oana Suteu |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | First Run Features(U.S.) |
Release dates |
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Running time | 97 minutes |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
Pink Ribbons, Inc. is a 2011National Film Board of Canada (NFB) documentary about thepink ribbon campaign, directed byLéa Pool and produced byRavida Din.[1] The film is based on the 2006 bookPink Ribbons, Inc: Breast Cancer and the Politics of Philanthropy by Samantha King, associate professor ofkinesiology and health studies atQueen's University.[2]
The film documents how some companies use pink ribbon-related marketing to increase sales while contributing only a small fraction of proceeds to the cause, or use "pinkwashing" to improve their public image while manufacturing products that may becarcinogenic. For the millions that are raised for breast cancer research by the campaign, the film argues that not enough money goes to prevention or exploring possible environmental factors.Pink Ribbons, Inc. features interviews with critics of the pink ribbon campaign, researchers and cancer patients as well as cancer fundraisers such asNancy Brinker, head ofSusan G. Komen for the Cure.[2][3][4]
Pool interviews Charlotte Haley, who began a peach-coloured ribbon campaign more than 20 years ago to press theNational Cancer Institute to increase its budget for cancer prevention research, from a mere 5 per cent. When Haley was approached bySelf magazine and cosmetics companyEstée Lauder in 1992 to use her ribbons in a breast cancer awareness campaign she refused, because she had no desire to be part of a commercial effort. So the company changed the colour to pink, to circumvent Haley's efforts.[5][6]
Also featured is the "IV League," a support group inAustin, Texas for women diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer, who feel unwelcome in the pink ribbon movement because, in the words of one member, "They’re learning to live and you’re learning to die."[6] Author Samantha King has called it “the tyranny of cheerfulness.”[2]
Ravida Din, an NFB producer, is a breast cancer survivor who had read Samantha King's book as well asBarbara Ehrenreich's 2001Harper's Magazine article "Welcome to Cancerland" after her own experience with the disease and its treatment:
“I was initially fascinated by King’s economic and historical context around philanthropy,” she said. “The question I was intrigued by was, ‘How did we get to this kind of breast cancer culture that privileges shopping [as a solution] as opposed to getting angry and asking for change?'"[7]
After developing an outline for the project with help from scriptwritersNancy Guerin andPatricia Kearns, Din began looking for the right director, and approached Pool with the project.[2][4]
Pool illustrates written facts about breast cancer, in place of traditional documentarynarration, and includes animation by Francis Gelinas as well as an archival TV clip ofAlfred Hitchcock directingWilliam Shatner as a doctor telling a patient she has breast cancer. The film heavily features the colourpink, on clothing, in marketing, and floodlit monuments likeNiagara Falls and theEmpire State Building.[3][4] This movie also shows several clips of public rallies and walking/running events, such as theKomen Walk for the Cure.
Pink Ribbons, Inc. premiered at the2011 Toronto International Film Festival.[7] It opened in Canadian theatres on February 3, 2012,[8] a date which coincided with the reversal of a controversialSusan G. Komen attempt to sever ties toPlanned Parenthood's US breast screening clinic programme.[9]
According to Deborah Drisdell, head of the NFB's accessibility and digital enterprises division, the NFB chose to distribute the film itself in Canada rather than use a commercial distributor to better control the marketing and capitalize on its ongoing work with community groups in Canada.First Run Features will distributePink Ribbons, Inc. in the United States.[10]
Currently,Pink Ribbons, Inc. has a rating of 88% onRotten Tomatoes, based on 33 reviews and an average score of 7/10.[11]
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