As We're Told (2018)

As We're Told (2018) poster

"It's simple! We do as we're told." This disconcerting reply comes from a Swedish employment office employee when asked how the country’s most unpopular government agency works. And that’s not all: in this creative documentary, case workers, receptionists and psychologists reveal how the Swedish employment system is failing. They complain about inadequate software and mystifying error messages, excessive caseloads and demoralizing results—on average, each case worker helps just 10 people find work each year, and only one in 10 clients will find a new job. To assure the anonymity of the interviewees, they're all represented by cardboard puppets. Thanks to visible puppeteers, expressive eyes and recognizable gestures, these puppets quickly take on the appearance of real people. The result is a fascinating, comical and artistic study of human strategies to get along in an irrational bureaucracy.

Director: Fredrik Wenzel, Erik Holmström
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 28 min
Release Date:

Cast

Editing: Fredrik Wenzel, Erik Holmström
Production: Fasad
Country: Sweden
Language: svenska
Original Language: sv

Keywords

employment agency, short film

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is As We're Told about?
"It's simple! We do as we're told." This disconcerting reply comes from a Swedish employment office employee when asked how the country’s most unpopular government agency works. And that’s not all: in this creative documentary, case workers, receptionists and psychologists reveal how the Swedish employment system is failing. They complain about inadequate software and mystifying error messages, excessive caseloads and demoralizing results—on average, each case worker helps just 10 people find work each year, and only one in 10 clients will find a new job. To assure the anonymity of the interviewees, they're all represented by cardboard puppets. Thanks to visible puppeteers, expressive eyes and recognizable gestures, these puppets quickly take on the appearance of real people. The result is a fascinating, comical and artistic study of human strategies to get along in an irrational bureaucracy.
Who directed As We're Told?
As We're Told was directed by Fredrik Wenzel, Erik Holmström.
Who stars in As We're Told?
As We're Told stars Nils Dernevik, Leif Andrée, Henrik Dorsin, Andrea Edwards, Per Grytt, Maria Kulle.
How long is As We're Told?
As We're Told has a runtime of 28m (28 minutes).
What genre is As We're Told?
As We're Told is a Documentary film.
Where was As We're Told produced?
As We're Told was produced in Sweden.