Ting Xu (she/her) is a second-year research master student in Arts and Cultures at the University of Amsterdam. She studies varied cultural objects related to breakups. Her interdisciplinary research draws from critical theories, psychology, neuroscience, and more. Xu’s goal is to explore how arts can loosen up situations of breakups and help sustain emotional well-being. She is currently a member of the International Association of Relationship Research and the Netherlands Institute for Cultural Analysis.
Workshop: Learning from Breakup Films
There are times when someone feels like consuming something, like a film, an episode from a series, or
a short vlog for the simple purpose of entertainment. But often, they may not be consciously aware of
how various cultural objects affect their thoughts and feelings. “They” might include “you and me”. This
workshop organized by Ting Xu will teach you to learn from romance films on breakup and recognize
scenes where cruelty and optimism interact, and how to reflect upon experiences of hard goodbye to
intimate others. In other words, how to gain awareness from films critically to retrospectively review
heartbreak and its residues, being it negative or positive.
For those who have experienced heartbreak in breakup or who have friends, families or others with
these experiences, or who are simply curious about the topic of breakup and how films can become
creative teachers to guide viewers to reflect. Participants should not expect this as a therapy session and
should be ready to face scenes of couples splitting up and fighting and engage in group exercises in
which feelings, thoughts and bodily sensations will be observed. Anyone who is too sensitive in sharing
responses in a group setting is allowed to express so and skip the uncomfortable part.
Desired outcomes
- Have fun with films in group and combine it with mindfulness exercises
- Increase awareness of one’s aesthetic experience and its significance at a personal level
- Get into an analytic mode to see details and slow down “automatic” consumption of artworks
- Learn to relate to difficult past experiences gently and communicate any negative feelings and
thoughts to oneself and others effectively