In his essay Post Cinematic Affect, Shaviro (2016) examines the relationship between film, affect and emotion through the lens of neoliberal economics, drawing parallels between the flows of affect/emotion and financial flows. 

He argues that affect operates on an experiential, unconscious plane, often on a physical/bodily level and is not ‘ownable or recognisable’. Conversely, emotion is affect ‘tamed and reduced’ to the extent that it becomes a resource in itself that can be possessed, invested, and ultimately commodified under neoliberal financial systems. 

Analysing the role of film in this relationship, Shaviro states that film is ‘both symptomatic and productive.’ (2016, p.131) It is symptomatic as it is capable of reflecting, rearticulating and representing complex social processes. At the same time, it is productive, influencing and feeding into the very same social processes that it seeks to represent. Film is, therefore, not an objective, passive index of society, but a medium that is deeply entangled in active dialogue with its subject. 

Shaviro’s ideas are exemplified in perfume advertisements: take for example this advertisement for the Burberry Goddess perfume (2023). It follows a fairly standard format that many perfume ads adhere to: a minute-long film with no clear narrative, featuring impressive visuals and and inspiring soundtrack. This particular ad evokes strong feelings of courage, bravery and adventure: it opens with actress Emma Mackey with a look of determination on her face, before cutting to a number of fast-paced shots of her running through grassland with a pack of lionesses – all while softly lit by a glowing, inspiring sunset in the background. 

Perfume advertisements like this one have more in common with art cinema than blockbuster films: experimental, evocative with no clear anchoring in linear space and time. They are highly evocative and prime examples of film as a ‘productive’ process, generating affect and capitalising on it at the same time (Shaviro, 2016, p. 131). The subjective, private experience of exploration and adventure is co-opted for financial gain, exploited by a massive corporation for the purpose of selling a product. 

And this isn’t a trend unique to the perfume industry: all across the advertising industry there’s been a massive shift towards emotional advertising and ‘selling a feeling’ (Welbourne, 2022). While ads of the past (like this one by Volkswagen) used to focus on unique selling points and features of the product, today’s ads instead focus on creating a brand, and associating a feeling or a lifestyle with that brand. Brands have come to realise that, much like Shaviro argues, emotions are a highly valuable resource that can be exploited and invested for financial ends. 

By Yanning Tan, BA Media and Communications

References:

1. Denson, S., Leyda, J. and Shaviro, S. (2016) ‘Post-cinematic Affect’, in Post-cinema: Theorizing 21st-Century film. Falmer: REFRAME Books, pp. 129–144.
2. Welbourne, T. (2022) Emotional advertising: How and why brands use it to drive sales, The Drum. Available at: https://www.thedrum.com/opinion/2022/02/14/emotional-advertising-how-and-why-brands-use-it-drive-sales (Accessed: 08 November 2023).