Evaluation - Representation of Social Groups

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

In my film opening the focus is directed towards a young protagonist in her late teenage years. In the film she is faced with trying to find her younger sister, Tasha, who has gone missing due to becoming involved in drug usage and peer pressure. The older sister- our protagonist- has to face her own issues to try to find and help her sister overcome hers. Issues such as loss and the struggle of dealing with things we cannot change in life and the hopelessness that this brings are just some of the challenges this young teen has to face throughout the film.

Across the drama genre, teenagers are faced with many challenges and issues such as: drug usage, peer pressure, school and social circles, leading double lives behind the backs of their parents.

We can see examples of teenagers struggling to overcome these issues in films such as Adulthood which focuses on young adults involved in gangs, violence and drugs. This reflects the frequently held perception by many that teenagers are troublemakers and that the reasons for their faults and attitudes are reliant on not just society but upbringing and friendship circles. This is something that is relatable to the character of the younger sister in my film opening.

Another different representation of teenagers is within the social circles of school life and the stereotypes that young people are labelled with. In films such as St Trinians we see examples of these firm social circles and stereotypes being used in relation to teenagers. The stereotypical 'reckless youngster' is something which I incorporated in the character of the younger sister. Even though we do not see Tasha in the opening of the film, the fact that she has gone missing reflects the rash side of teens and how they can become wrapped up in a situation that is far bigger and more dangerous than they first may percieve it to be.

Subtle uses of setting is something I used to subliminally suggest the darker tones of the film. There are two locations in the small montage that show our protagonist going through first an alleyway and then a tunnel with graffiti on the crumbling walls. The fact that the protagonist strides boldly through the tunnel, ignoring the intimidation of the darkness and the threat of who could be nearby shows that she has the strength of character to not allow herself to become caught up in that area of teenagehood. This makes her a contrast to her younger sister who has fallen prey to this.

The protagonist herself is a somewhat neutral character, she faces her own issues but holds strength and determination. She is relatively protective over her younger sister, and the fact that she is already aware of her sister mixing with the wrong people shows that there must be a strong bond of trust between them. There is the idea of hiding these issues from parents as the elder sibling takes on perhaps a more understanding parental role as Tasha would believe that her parents would not hold the same understanding as her older sister- therefore the protagonist would have been the main bank of support.

In the film 'Children of Men' the protagonist may not been a young adult faced with exactly the same issues, but he is dealing with an issue that involves a risk and a character changing journey- similar to the protagonist in my own film opening. Both characters are relatively ordinary looking, their clothes are normal and relatively plain which represents the neutral side of them. Both however speak in serious tones and show little humour, this represents their strength of character and their focus on the task they are trying to follow.