1. Iconography:
Iconography used in coming of age films are usually mobile phones and school books as these are things
young people use regularly. Pop music is also strong iconography as this is also often related to young people
as it is youthful and fun. Some other iconography is things such as posters of bands as this is something many
teenagers are interested in for example a lot of adolescent girls are big fans of the band one direction so
posters of these would be seen as good iconography for a girly teenaged character. Cd’s and magazines are
also very good for showing the characters interest for example young girls would have magazines such as
Seventeen magazine as it has a big female teenage audience and talks about themes such as beauty
products and fashion which are big interests for teenage girls and would connote the character is a typical
girly girl.
Location:
Coming of age films usually have setting
such as taking place in a school or at
the protagonists home. If the
protagonist is girly they may have parts
where the character goes shopping to
the mall as it is something that would
appeal to the female audience as a lot
of teenage girls go shopping with their
friends. They often show the
protagonists bedroom at some point as
it reveals much about their character as
it is a private place usually filled with
their interests such as music, science,
games etc. it is a god opportunity for
the film makers to incorporate as much
iconography as possible to create a
personality and theme to their film.
School or college is also a good setting
because the teenage audience will
relate as it is somewhere they go
everyday of their lives. Other places
could be places such as sports, music,
science etc. clubs, leisure facilities such
as the cinema (maybe on a date with
the protagonists love interest).
Narrative:
The storyline in these type of films usually revolves around a teenaged
protagonist who has some kind obstacle in their life. They often want to be
accepted and try to be popular or try to win over their crush or they have some
kind of hobby or talent such as singing and have dreams of making it big however
often there is something in the way of this such as their family not accepting their
dreams and trying to make them do something else such as join their family
business. They can often just be about a teenagers day to day life and the
struggles they face at school being a misfit and suffering embarrassing situations,
all these things relate with their target audience of teenagers as the audience can
relate to these situations as many of them have actually been in them their selves
or seen people who are. THEMES: EDUCATION, ROMANCE, FRIENDSHIPS,
OVERCOMING OBSTACLES IN THEIR DAILY LIFE.
Music:
The music in these type of films is normally what is in the mainstream at
the time the film is made so the average teenager will relate although
depending on the personality of the protagonist it could either be rock
or pop as it displays their interests and instantly shows the audience
what type of person the protagonist is e.g. it could display if they are
rebellious or a positive person depending on the song but typically pop
is the music most often used because it is upbeat and happy which is a
quality of a lot of coming of age films as they are supposed to be feel
good movies.
Protagonist:
The protagonist are usually male or female
and are in their teenage years. They normally
have some kind of interest or hobby that the
film revolves around. Often they are social
misfits and the film is about them wanting to
be accepted. They almost always have
different personalities to keep the films
interesting and allow the audience to relate.
Other characters tend to be the protagonists
crush, their friends, bullies, parents, popular
and social outcast groups at school.
Actors/Actresses:People like Zac
Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Hilary Duff, Selena
Gomez are good examples as they have all
been in a many coming of age movies.