Individual Task- Genre and Coventions

Teen Films- Genre and Conventions

Teen films is a film genre targeted at teenagers and young adults in which the plot is based upon the interest of teenagers, such as first love, rebellion, conflict with parents and teenage angst. Teen films began in 1950s.
Most teenagers and young adults watch teen films as they can relate to the conflict and themes that are explored in teen movies.
Common Themes or Topics found in Teen Films are:

• Romance- Relationships and Friendships
• Drama
• Crime
• Conflict with Parents
• Rebelling 
• Competitions- Between sports or between friends or gangs
• Cliques (jocks,nerds, anti-social, cheerleaders, basketball team)

Not all teen films appeal to teens or young adults, this is because they are divided into sub genres.This may include:

• Comedy
• Fantasy
• Thriller
• Action
• Horror

Some teen films may attract more male than females and some films may attract more females than males, this depends on what genre the teen film is based on. For example Twilight is a movie that will attract more females as the movie is about a vampire who falls in love with a human, this attracts teens due to the romance between the vampire and human and the main character is a vampire, this is an fantasy element. Another reason would be because the vampire character is played by Robert Pattinson. A film such as Love and Basketball will attract both males and females as it is about romance between a male and female character which attracts females and sports which attracts males. this film also has competition which attracts both male and females as teenagers nowadays are always in competition in who comes first who who does what best.

Teens may be attracted to teen movies due to the locations the film is filmed in, you will find in teen films the movie is based in locations where you will find teenagers spend most of their time. The common locations are:

• Bedroom ( teens gossip or intimate scenes take place in the bedroom )
• Garden (most parties take place in the garden)
• Canteen/Cafeteria ( fights between friends/cliques )
• Sports Hall ( school basketball or other sports)
• Dinner/ Malls/Shopping Centre ( most teens spend their free time at these locations)
• Cinemas/ Car Parks ( most teens hangout at these location with friends)

Another factor that attracts teens and young adults into watching teen films are the characters in teen films. The characters are usually based on strong stereotypes. 

stereotypical Characters found in teen films are

• The Popular Guy- who is the captain of the basket ball team, voted as the student body, has a high status due to the fact as his the captain and is good looking and all the girls want to be with.
• The Popular Girl- a daddy's little girls gets everything she wants, wears designer clothes most of the time, she's mostly blonde, and is good looking and all the boys want to be with her
• The Nerd- is the outcast and seen as a loner and the beginning of the movie the nerd is in braces or ears glasses and does not fit in however by the movie the nerd has gone through a transformation and is 'good looking'.