Hollywood’s reputation for prioritizing sensational drama over accuracy applies just as well to movies, TV shows, and even documentaries about finance.
Not only do they take creative liberties with the narrative, but they are perfectly happy to substitute facts in order to capture the audience’s attention.
Perhaps one of the most egregious examples would be the prize-winning “The Wolf of Wall Street”. The movie followed a man who worked on Wall Street for only one day in his entire life.
But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t shows that manage to not only capture an audience but actually be fairly accurate or helpful for traders.
Sometimes, a series might not be strictly about trading or finance. Nonetheless, it can provide some valuable insights that help traders address issues relating to the markets.
Or they might simply be inspirational. Indeed they may urge some out-of-the-box thinking, and motivate a deeper dive into what makes the markets tick.
So let’s go over some of them today.
1.) Billions
The series is about finance, of course, not strictly trading. And to make it more exciting and dramatic, it focuses on the battle between the two main characters.
In fact, one is engaged in insider trading, and another is a regulator trying to catch him.
Of course, we don’t aspire to be insider traders or get involved in any other kind of criminal activity for that matter. But, as the drama unfolds, viewers get a pretty naked view of trading practices at the higher echelons of the market.
Although it’s a fictional series, many of the events are based on actual history. This can be an interesting starting point to research what major financial firms have done; both right and wrong.
2.) The Profit
This show hosted by Campingworld’s CEO Marcus Lemonis is about rescuing failing small businesses.
At first, glance, it might not seem to relate to trading at all.
But as the show breaks down the process of evaluating businesses, what makes them profitable, and how to manage money, a trove of useful tips, tricks, practices, and information for traders, the connection becomes evident.
After all, trading is like a business, and many traders have a similar problem that business owners have: money management. If you are looking to trade stocks, the series goes over the basics of evaluating what is a good or bad investment.
It wouldn’t be unfair to say you can’t invest in stocks without knowing the evaluation tools that are shown in practice in the show.
3.) Dirty Money
Sometimes the best way to learn is through the mistakes of others.
Dirty Money is a Netflix series exploring some of the more notorious cases of financial corruption. Two examples of this are securities fraud and creative accounting.
Each episode goes into depth to explain the financial concepts and issues with each case. In turn, this allows viewers to extract lessons about how the system works.
It’s also a great way to get exposed to new concepts and use them as inspiration to find out more about the subjects. The style and presentation of the show make finding out about these things more intriguing and fun.
Friday, 18 Jun, 2021 / 1:23