The Pickup Game
Synopsis
An inside look at the emergence of the ‘pickup’ industry - a business where self-styled seduction coaches travel the world, charging a small fortune to teach men skills they claim will guarantee them success with women.
It can be a highly lucrative occupation, with many companies earning millions of dollars each year. But, it is also an industry rife with controversy and scandal; several teachers have been deported from countries for their contentious methodologies, and pickup businesses are often the subject of fierce public criticism.
Despite this, men the world over collectively spend hundreds of millions of dollars to attend seminars, download online courses and have one-on-one coaching sessions with instructors they feel can give them the dating life of their dreams. In the minds of students, many of these instructors become more than just teachers - they become idols.
From the glossy exterior, where courses are packaged as self-improvement, to the dark underbelly of sexual assault, pyramid scheme marketing and secret collusion, this documentary pulls back the curtain to reveal a world that is fascinating and horrific in equal measure.
Official Selection Hot Docs 2019 - Making Believe - World premiere
Details
- Year
- 2019
- Type of film
- Features
- Running Time
- 96 min
- Format
- 4K
- Director
- Matthew O'Connor, Barnaby O'Connor
- Producer
- Mike Willoughby, James De Val, William Watson, Matthew O'Connor, Barnaby O'Connor
- Co-Producer
- Giselle Fryatt
- Executive Producer
- William Watson
- Editor
- Matthew O'Connor, Barnaby O'Connor
- Director of Photography
- Vince Knight, Claire Buxton, Tom Webster
- Consulting Producer
- Cassandra Roberts
Genre
Production status
Complete
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Last updated 21st March 2019
