CONTENT WARNING: This story contains discussion of rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment, and assault-related trauma.
The has been a vastly positive thing, and challenging power structures in industries that have deeply ingrained issues with sexual misconduct and misogyny.
Leading to consequences for , the movement has also branched out to other countries, leading to the accusations of Australian personalities such as Channel 9's .
While this ongoing shift in power has created and justice for survivors of rape, sexual assault, and sexual harassment, it has also been an extremely overwhelming period of time for many. #MeToo has been bold, confronting and in-your-face — all good movements have to be in order to make change — but it has also meant that topics that hold enormous traumatic weight have been inescapable for survivors.
Self-preservation and self-care is something many survivors have to think about on a daily basis, and while #MeToo stories and accusations dominate headlines, simple daily activities such as being on social media or watching television have become significantly tougher.
Every woman is forced to draw their line when it comes to the prevalence of abusive and problematic people in the film and music industries. For example, as a survivor, I have never and will never see a film, and I absolutely refuse to listen to a single second of 's music - but I have watched plenty of the shows, movies, and listened to music that feature other abusers. Drawing your line is extraordinarily difficult, and my own personal rules are not steadfast - I think about it constantly, and my line in the sand changes regularly.
Some choose to draw the hard line and avoid all media that benefits accused abusers, while others - concerned that avoiding absolutely everything featuring accused abusers would leave them with almost no content left to enjoy - choose to (and are mentally able to) separate the art from the problematic nature of the artist.
That is every person's choice to make, and there's no point in discrediting the validity of where someone else has chosen to place their line. A right to a choice, and intersectional, unwavering support of women's choices, is (or at least, should be) the basis of modern-day feminism.
So, in the wake of the #MeToo movement, knowing that many are struggling to keep up with the sheer volume of people who have been accused, an anonymous group has created - a database of movies and television shows that feature those accused of sexually-based offences.
As an example, if you type Search Party, which features a young cast including Alia Shawkat, John Reynolds, and John Early, the database will show you that none of the cast or creators have been accused. Fresh apples!
However, if you search for House of Cards, which features Kevin Spacey (one of the first Hollywood heavyweights to ) as the lead actor, it will include his name and tell you that the show features 'rotten apples'.
The database also includes those behind the scenes, such as screenwriters, producers and directors. For example, if you look for Miramax film Kill Bill: Vol 1, it will also show you that the film features were executive producers.
This system does two things - it allows people not to support content that may benefit - financially or otherwise - someone who has been accused of sexual misconduct.
Source: Rotten Apples (screenshot)
Source: Rotten Apples (screenshot)
Source: Rotten Apples (screenshot)
The website's info page states, "The goal of this site is to further drive awareness of just how pervasive sexual misconduct in film and television is and to help make ethical media consumption easier".
However, it also acts as a gate to a safe space. Many people who have experienced assault, rape, or harassment live with PTSD or trauma-related mental illness, and seeing high-profile abusers pop up in a movie may act as a trigger (in the ) for some.
So, the allows those who live with PTSD or trauma-related mental illness to avoid this completely, in order to protect their mental health.
#MeToo is a sorely-needed, important movement that has created a sense of community and power for those who have been through the horrendous experiences of rape, assault, or harassment. However, it's of utmost importance to protect all survivors. There's an uncountable amount of people who are not able to come forward about their experience or speak up about how #MeToo is affecting them, and simple options like this allow them to protect themselves. The health and happiness of survivors should be an absolute priority.
You can try Rotten Apples out here:
