2. PLOT
Teen comedies are known as following storylines of coming of age, first love, rebellion,
conflict with parents, teen angst or alienation. For example teenaged girls always leaving
love letters’ in boys lockers is a typical way of showing girls enjoying themselves at school
rather than showing the typical things that happen at school in reality
These storylines are every teen comedy as is targets teenagers and young adults
Teen comedies mainly appeal to young females however there are some which also appeal
to young males
Furthermore, serious subject matters are presented in a glossy, stereotyped or trivialized way
in order to gain interests of teenagers
3. LOCATION
Teen comedy locations are kept fairly basic due to teenagers only being in certain typical
locations such as school, in a bedroom or their local area.
Schools are mainly used as every teenager goes to school therefore this is where they
mainly would be found. In teen comedies schools are not recognised as being the typical
place to learn, we often see teenagers treating it more like a place to socialise because of
the exaggerated drama that happens within the building
Homes and bedrooms are another typical setting for a teen comedy film as it represents
where else characters spend their time before and/or after school. For example in most
films we see characters heading straight home from school whereas in reality it is likely
that students hang around or go to the shop on their way home
Local areas are used to show the journey to and from school
4. CHARACTERS
Typical American style teen comedies contain of classical characters who are
stereotyped to act in different ways
Depending on the cultural context of the film, characters are seen as acting in certain
ways to meet the stereotypes of a typical teenager. For example going to proms,
alcohol, illegal substances, high school, social groups and cliques' and loosing ones
virginity
Most teen comedies include characters that are easily able to fall into any of these
groups:
oThe Boy/Girl next door)
The Jock/Cheerleader
oThe New Girl/Boy
School Diva
oThe Loner
The Geek/Nerd
oThe Band Geek
The Rebel
oClass Hottie
The Misfit, or The Outcast oClass Clown
A character who knows a lot may be classed as the nerd, this would result into humour as
jokes about this character can be made. For example the character may show that they
know a lot about a certain topic however they will be made fun of by other characters are
they would seem un-cool.
