Background information

The Great Recession

The film Nomadland directed by Chloé Zhao mentions events that are a consequence of the period known as the Great Recession. The Great Recession was a period of global economic decline, which started in 2007 and ended in 2009. Although the impact of the recession varied from country to country, it was declared at the time to be the most severe financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Some of the consequences of the Recession were a drop in international trade, an increase in debts, and growing unemployment. The United States was especially affected, and it took a long time for the economy to recover. The housing market suffered in particular, as more and more people were becoming unemployed and in debt and could no longer afford to pay their mortgages. As a result, many homes were foreclosed. The situation has improved somewhat, but the housing market still had not recovered completely even at the beginning of the 2020s. 

In Nomadland, some of the consequences of the housing problem are that some people live in vans or other types of vehicles, sometimes because they cannot afford a house. At the same time, Fern’s brother in law, George, works in real estate. He and...