Teen coming of age movies focus on the transition from teenager to adult by showing a character's personal growth and development of their identity. These films are typically set in high schools and other places teenagers socialize and explore their independence from parents. They rely on stereotypes, popular music, dialogue and montage sequences to track a character's inner conflicts and maturation into adulthood. While aimed at teenage audiences, some adult viewers also enjoy these films.

3.  Coming of age films explore the formation of
PERSONAL IDENTITY.
 In teen coming of age movies (TCOA), that
personal identity is developed by the transition
from teenager to adult
 Thus, teen coming of age movies show the
journey that a person takes to grow into their
more fully developed selves.

4.  TCOA movies are usually made for a teenage
audience
 Most teen films rely on teen culture to connect with
their audience, which may include references that
older generations may not understand.
 These movies also focus on issues that are more
easily relatable for teenagers, such as high school or
social cliques.
 That being said, some adults also enjoy TCOA
movies…

5.  Picture of Mr. Fusco

6.  High schools
 Teen “hang outs”
 Malls
 Parties
 Dances
 Usually, the setting needs to have some
distance from adults – there needs to be an
element of freedom

7.  A person (or several people) “grow up”
 Become independent from parents
 Have a sexual “awakening”
 Develop a personal identity or philosophy
 Mature in some way
 Usually, there is a focus on internal conflict.
The external conflict is secondary, and is used
to emphasize the characters’ inner conflict

8.  TCOA movies rely on stereotypes, such as…

14.  Props and costumes are usually from the teen
culture of the time.

15.  The emphasis in TCOA movies is on plot and
character development – this means that the
camera work is not an important element.
 Also, TCOA movies try to reflect real life
situations, so the camera tries to remain as
unnoticeable as possible.
 Camera usually sticks to standard shot patterns
– anything unusual will draw attention.

16.  Montage Sequences are used often to show the
transformation from teenager to adult
 Very little action, so the editing is relatively
slow-paced
 TCOA movies use a lot of sustained shots of
people’s faces to emphasize the inner conflict

17.  Use of teen slang (whether it actually is used
by teenagers or not)
 Popular music
 Lots of dialogue – the focus is on discussion,
not action. Having lots of dialogue allows the
viewer to track the characters growth.

18.  Teen movies are a sub-genre of Coming of Age
movies.
 Coming of Age movies, however, are very
versatile and can be matched with many genres,
such as:
 Sports (ex: The Sandlot, Basketball Diaries, Remember the
Titans)
 Bromance (ex: Superbad, Wedding Crashers)
 Drama (ex: Girl, Interrupted, 8 Mile)
 Comedy (ex: American Pie, 40 Year Old Virgin)