Evaluation Question 2 - How does your media product represent particular social groups? - Joe Sheldon

How does your media product represent particular social groups?

Our media project has three primary characters; Charlie, Gemma and Tom are all 16 &17 year old AS level students. Therefore, the film mainly portrays and challenges stereotypes surrounding teenagers and the male and female genders. In the few scenes we see, young people are presented as responsible and well-achieving, a contrast to the usual negative portrayal of teenagers. Both men are presented in somewhat stereotypical lights, with one being wary of others and one being a scary character.

The character of Charlie is presented as a dark and shady figure who is not a good member of society, which mirrors the average societal stereotype of teenagers. In the first shots of the film, we see him alone in an isolated and black location flicking a lighter. The mise-en-scene is symbolic of his inner darkness and his future psychopathic actions and tendencies. His introduction begins scary non-diegetic music, indicating to the audience that he is not to be trusted. His long and dark clothes is an indication of his dark thoughts and inner repressed feelings. Combined, these represent Charlie as the stereotypical antisocial and scary figure of a teenager.

Gender is represented both in it's stereotypical form and challenged within the piece. The character of Tom is more of a stereotypical male than that of charlie; while Tom is more headstrong and determined, Charlie is often more submissive and is forced into walking behind the other characters through proxemics and movement. Tom shows his determination and leadership, stereotypical of men, by saying to Gemma that he "doesn't like him [Charlie]". Whereas, Charlie is submissive to them in not moving to get back in the conversation when they move in front of him to talk about him. Gemma is presented as a somewhat stereotypical female when she says that she invited Charlie without knowing him well, as it portrays her as kind and welcoming. However, a later shot shows her in front of Charlie being the first to see the body, which shows her taking a leadership role. The medium shot shows her facial expression and her reaction, which is shock. However, she swears upon seeing it, which is not a stereotypically 'feminine' reaction.

The above shots compare our movie to Stand By Me (Dir. Reiner, 1987).

Finally, the film stereotypes teenagers as having a group mentality and tending to stick together rather than be solitary. Gemma and Tom hug at the start, showing their closeness as friends and indicating the isolated nature of Charlie, highlighting how unusual it is for teenagers to not have close relationships and friendships. The first time all three of the teenagers engage in the same conversation, they are established in a wide three shot, which shows them as more 'together' even though they aren't close.