Venstjerne

Venstjerne (Delkoran for "left stars") and stjernespolitik (Delkoran for "star politics") are terms used in Delkora to describe the intersection of politics and popular culture, particularly the film industry and music industry.

The phenomenon is popularly considered to have reached its height during the New Kingdom program and National Labor hegemony, famously resulting in well-known film stars being recruited by leftist or centre-leftist parties to run for office. It is compared by historians to the Golden Revolution in Gylias (which was an influence during the National Labor hegemony) and pop politics in Akashi.

Background

The reformist era, inaugurated by the Jarls Amendment of 1885, saw the consolidation of the second party system. Politics came to be dominated by the struggle between the left-wing, advocating radical reforms and egalitarianism, and the right-wing, advocating traditionalism and maintenance of the status quo.

The political struggle would be reflected in popular culture, which had a well-established progressive element, visible in the folkelitteratur movement and a politically active theatre and cabaret scene. The early 20th century saw the emergence of the film industry, and the establishment of the Delkoran Broadcasting Service in 1932. Cinema and television would thus become the dominant entertainment medium, displacing radio and theatre.

History

The 1930s precedent

Sofia Westergaard, Liberal Party Chancellor of Delkora (1932–1940)

Émilie Chauchoin, Progressive finance minister (1932–1940)

The Jaerevik clique became a significant presence in the struggle against noble privileges and conservatism in the early 20th century. At a time when both National Labor and the Liberal Party struggled with internal left–right splits, the clique represented a significant internal revolt against the aristocracy.

The beginnings of venstjerne date to the 1932 federal election, won by the Sofia Westergaard-led Liberals. Westergaard was a socialite, stalwart social democrat, and core member of the Jaerevik clique. This background gave her a willingness to adopt innovative campaigning methods, and reach out to previously neglected voting groups.

The Progressive Party, established as a vehicle for the progressive nobility after 1885, inadvertently provided the first manifestation of the phenomenon. It was led at the time by Émilie Chauchoin, a successful movie star turned politician. Chauchoin's career change was unprecedented, as was her appointment as finance minister. She proved a successful finance minister, forming a strong team with Westergaard as the most prominent members of the government.

National Labor, due to its then-conservative leadership and primarily working-class base, were derisive of attempts to appeal to the bohemian lumpenproletariat, leaving the initiative to the Liberals and Progressives.

The Westergaard government was a pioneer in cultural policy. Notable actions included establishing the Delkoran Broadcasting Service, creating a domestic quota for cinemas, and setting up Delkorskfilm A/S (a publicly-owned distribution and production company to stimulate the film industry). It built cordial ties with the country's progressive-minded cabaret and theatre scenes.

The 1940s–1950s opposition

The second party system was broken by the Liberal Party split of 1940, helping bring a Conservative–Agrarian coalition to office. Veidnar Albendor's government embarked on a course of sweeping economic liberalisation: cuts in taxes and social spending largely benefited the wealthy, while weakened competition laws enabled the rise of oligopolies.

Albendor's social conservatism led him to attempt to impose a censorship code on Delkoran films, in reaction to perceived "immorality". When the Federal Constitutional Court struck down the code as unconstitutional, he instead encouraged the consolidation of major film studios through vertical integration, as these would advantage conservative leadership and weaken the influence of unions and progressives. Further, DBS' budgets were cut, and Delkorskfilm was privatised, eliminating a significant public competitor for private studios.

Albendor's term saw a rise in militancy and vocal opposition throughout pop culture. Successful films like Aristokraterne (1956) and Fjødonor (1958), and the growing popularity of anarchist literature reflected dissatisfaction with conservative governance. National Labor's radical faction, taking notice of the Liberal–Progressive precedent, began pushing for a coordinated effort to mobilise support in the film industry.

Laura Lindberg, mayor of Abenvard

Olga Pilgaard, founder of Skærmland

Stjernespolitik continued to develop in opposition to conservative rule, and strengthened its leftist orientation. After the Progressives merged with the Liberals in 1940, Chauchoin successfully moved to state politics, becoming First Minister of Førelskov. Laura Lindberg, one of Delkora's leading cabaret stars, was elected mayor of Abenvard. Her policies of public works, beautification, social spending, and mobilising a coalition that included working-class, bohemian middle-class, and ethnic minority voters made her a prominent rival of Albendor, with whom she sparred over fiscal powers and subsidies.

One key contribution to the phenomenon came from Olga Pilgaard. An actress, screenwriter, and producer renowned as a grande dame of Delkoran cinema, Pilgaard founded Skærmland, a monthly magazine of the arts. Its attractive Art Deco presentation and politically active worldview made it popular, and it grew into one of the main forums for mobilising venstjerne and promoting left-wing politics in cinema and television.

The Liberal and National Labor outreach to the film industry began to bear fruit in the 1950s, particularly as the radical faction took over under Mette Elvensar. The Banking Crisis of 1953 caused an economic depression. Massive unemployment and growing poverty led to civil unrest, general strikes, and a guerrilla warfare campaign by the Labor Underground.

A notable coup in the period was Brynhild Svendsen's entrance into stjernepolitik. Svendsen was one of Delkora's biggest film stars, and had been intensely courted for support by the opposition, but was personally a conservative. The depression and collapse of public order turned her against the government, and she publicly endorsed the Liberals in the 1956 federal election, urging voters to defeat the government. Her profile was such that the Agrarian leader warned Hjalmar Madsen, "If even Svendsen is turning against you, you're heading for disaster."

The 1960s–1970s hegemony

The 1959 federal election was a landslide victory for National Labor, which formed a single-party majority government, and a severe defeat for the right-wing, with the Conservatives even falling behind the Liberals. This inauguarated a period of National Labor hegemony in Delkoran politics, which would last almost two decades.

The New Kingdom program implemented by Mette Elvensar and Geirbjørn Feldengaard brought radical changes to the economy. The welfare state and public services were greatly expanded, workers' rights were strengthened, and public and worker ownership were expanded. The program was greatly popular and assembled a New Kingdom coalition that brought National Labor and the Liberals to power at the federal, state, and local level. By the 1960s, the only state without a leftist government was Vassengård, whose moderate conservative governor Gunter Frølund cooperated with the New Kingdom program.

Jørna Winther, First Minister of Cybria

Brynhild Svendsen, First Minister of Banderhus

During the hegemony, there remained strains between National Labor's old left faction, which prioritised economic policy, and new left faction, which emphasized attention to social issues. The new leftists were close to the Liberals and Skærmland, and looked to the contemporary Golden Revolution in Gylias as a model. Under their influence, the Arts and Cultural Workers Union came to dominate the film and television industries. It further benefited from culture minister Chantal Beaumont's policies — herself probably the most famous example of venstjerne —, which included breaking up the major film studios, increasing support for local film production, and establishing the National Filminstitut.

Venstjerne in this period came to be associated with the radical current of the New Kingdom, which saw popular culture as a way to consolidate leftist influence, inspired by Gylias' Revolutionary Communications Office. Running under the Liberal banner, Svendsen became First Minister of Banderhus at the head of a Liberal–National Labor coalition, while the vocally socialist Jørna Winther was elected First Minister of Cybria.

The milieu of National Labor hegemony and leftist agitation, including the 1968 protests, aided the rise of a politically-charged and experimental nouvelle vague scene in Delkoran cinema. One famous star to emerge from this scene was Anna Karina, who worked extensively in both Delkora and Gylias and would later herself enter politics.

From the other end, the National Filminstitut commissioned message films and documentaries which advanced the government viewpoint, and introduced subtle pro-New Kingdom messages into popular comedies like Tre fyre ved navn Mads (which promoted the new populist Air Delkora) and Lucy Gylling — both of which starred Winther and gave her a popular champagne socialist image.

Another manifestation of venstjerne was seen in the radical overhaul of DBS under the NK Group from 1960 to 1981. During their tenure as Director-General and Chair of the Board of Supervisors respectively, Nikoleta and Nike sought to modernize the organization, firing much of its senior level staff and replacing them with younger, radical faces. They abolished content restrictions and encouraged the production of satire, artistic and experimental programming, pop music shows geared toward a teenage audience, and investigative journalism. Both worked as actress prior to their career at the DBS, and occasionally took minor roles in films during their tenure as well.

Later developments

The Conservative–Agrarian coalition returned to power in 1983. The governments of Lars af Vellarand and Ulrik Andersen pursued an agenda of fiscal and social conservatism, attempting to undo the New Kingdom program. While they never managed to attain a majority to repeal it outright, they sought to undermine it through spending cuts, tax cuts, and privatisations.

The long period in opposition had embittered the Conservatives' right-wing against venstjerne, and thus the government also engaged in public confrontations with the cultural sector, attacking the NK Group's leadership of DBS and implementing media deregulation among policies intended to weaken the ACWU and venstjerne current.

Venstjerne saw something of a resurgence in the 1990s in relation to Delkora's burgeoning alt-rock scene. A number of notable figures from this scene went on to run for state and local offices, many being recruited by the Green Party and Radical Front. These included the original bassist for Iron Opera House, who was elected to the Gothendral Municipal Council in 1993, the lead guitarist for The Faded Zeros, who was elected a state representative for Cybria in 1996, and several others.

Kol Vossgaard, who became the first Green Party chancellor of Delkora in 2002, notably had close connections to the punk rock scene in Gothendral, having been involved with local bands while in college, although he was not famous prior to his entry into politics. He showed a strong interest in cultural policy, securing increased funding for the arts and presiding over a DBS that pushed forward with new controversial programming.

Legacy

The success of venstjerne left a notable impact on Delkoran politics and popular culture. Although it never became as widely-accepted and common as Akashi's pop politics, it made it accepted, indeed sometimes expected, for film stars to be politically outspoken and use their stardom to promote strongly-supported causes. It thus loosened the old, more restrictive model of stardom in favour of a more flexible one that encouraged activism and political engagement.

Stjernespolitik has occasionally been the subject of critiques from the left, including an editorial in 2016 from a commentator who lamented that "there are some Delkoran journalists who are tougher on film stars than politicians." Others have argued that it distracts from genuine political organizing work and that it fails to challenge the popular perception of the film industry as being a hierarchical and undemocratic institution.

Still, many others on the left have defended the venstjerne phenomenon for its potential to support social movements, with one commentator writing in 2018: "There are millions of people whose only interaction with the political life of our country occurs in their consumption of its popular culture and the political subtexts contained therein. What better agitator than the venstjerne to win these people to the cause of social change?". A similar argument was made by acid communism theorists Marie-Hélène Arnaud and Janet Randy, who described venstjerne as an attempt to forge cultural hegemony in opposition to the dominant ideology of capitalism.