In his daring film, Shalini Kantayya presents the brilliance and shadows of the eponymous social media platform, trying to explain both the phenomenon of its popularity and the threats behind it. It shows the app can be used for personal gain and to promote activism or the fight for human rights. The film unveils behind-the-scenes information about the platform's creation and its links with the Chinese authorities, not to mention the issue of censorship of content uncomfortable for the Beijing authorities. It also includes a long list of offences, such as data privacy, which, of course, relate to other platforms as well. But "TikTok, Boom" is also a story about how the world has changed, the new opportunities and the hitherto unknown limitations brought by technology. 

Konrad Wirkowski 

WATCH DOCS nomination at the American Film Festival