An account of the six-week death spiral that brought down the company’s IPO, a behind-the-scenes look at WeWork’s frat-boy culture.
“I want to make the world a better place and make money doing it.” CEO Adam Neumann was a Svengali a/k/a a great bullshitter who mesmerized a lot of people. He grew up in communes in Oregon and Israel and attempted to adapt this experience into a warped corporate structure. His model to “change the corporate culture” by corporatizing small businesses in shared spaces was contradictory. Somehow, WeWork’s valuation rose to $47 Billion and while the documentary captures the events, it fails to recognize larger systemic issues that should be addressed. Such as, why are these hollow entities able to thrive?
Director Jed Rothstein uses an abundance of news clips, interviews with former employees, and archival footage showing Neumann spouting insanity. Neumann’s strategies, like hosting summer camp music festivals, contain heavy cult vibes with a purchased camaraderie. He recruited his partner Miguel whose architect background helped turn a dingy Manhattan building into a sleekly designed space. Their new office promised an egalitarian environment for artists and entrepreneurs to connect and fill a void in their lives.
Rothstein and crew mention some important things like the faux-philanthropist angle of mega-corporations and conglomerates. WeWork and other companies trying to be involved in education, real estate, and surveillance show that every facet of life is on the table for commodification.
Luckily, most of the subjects are entertaining and one journalist for The Atlantic tries to absolve himself of being bamboozled by Neumann. While a few people are honest about simply wanting success, others try really hard to distance themselves and ironically think they’re just good people who only wanted to change the world.
“WeWork: Or the Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn” recently had its World Premiere at the
2021 SXSW Film Festival and will be available to stream exclusively on Hulu April 2nd
