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Films about workplace bullying:

Films about workplace bullying:


We have talked about different types of bullying, different contexts, etc. Today I want to talk to you about different films focused on workplace bullying.


The first film is called ‘’Mobbing’’, by Nicole Weegmann. This shows how a woman is psychologically harassed by coworkers after returning from maternity leave. The film, unfortunately, is based on true events.


The second film to highlight is ‘’The Assistant’’, by Kitty Green, which shows the day-to-day work relationship between a young assistant and a powerful executive. It subtly teaches the different power dynamics, the toxic environment and psychological harassment.


Another similar film is ‘’The Devil Wears Prada’’, by David Frankel. This film probably sounds more familiar to you, since it is quite well-known. Once again, a young journalist works for an extremely demanding and manipulative boss.


We see that in most films that address workplace bullying, the victim is usually a young woman, dominated and humiliated by a man, as in the case of the film ‘’Ma part du gâteau’’, by Cédric Klapisch. This shows how a woman works for a man involved in the dismissal of her last job, acting as a ‘’job woman’’, clearly showing the inequality between the two characters and the abuse of power.


In addition to films, we also find series that show the dynamics of workplace bullying. An example would be ‘’The Office’’, a very good series that takes place in a work office and that through humor you see the different characters and their roles within the company. 


Another very interesting example is ‘’Black Mirror’’, where examples related to bullying appear in different episodes such as ‘’Fifteen Million Merits’’, in ‘’Nosedive’’ or in ‘’Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too’’. Although not all of them are focused on the world of work, we can see forms of bullying and similar concepts, such as structural bullying, social exclusion or exploitation.


I find that these audiovisual resources are a very good tool for working with children's education and that they could be used to put in classrooms or work with the content of these!




Júlia Pons Gibert


Comments

  1. Adrià BorràsMay 30, 2025 at 10:05 AM

    Oh, I actually saw The Assistant a few years ago and I also recommend it! It's a great example of psychological violence and, although it's focused on workplace, it shows dynamics of violence, intimidation and anxiety that can mirror the dynamics of school bullying. I found very interesting how the movie never shows the agressor, and how the anxiety that the movie creates comes from the discomfort of being in a place where you're not welcome, in a place where you're being harassed. That's why the little noises of the office or even the silences become so terryfing for the main character and for ourselves, because bullying creates an anticipation, an alert or need to expect that something terrible can happen to you anytime soon.

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