This document discusses the codes and conventions of social realist films. Some typical elements include working class characters, depictions of daily life, substance abuse, and exploring social issues through emotional stories of individuals overcoming adversity. Two examples given are the films "This is England", about UK skinheads in the 1980s, and "Billy Elliot", about a boy torn between his love of dance and family pressures. Both examples relate to the film "Verses" discussed in the document through their portrayals of working class culture and characters pursuing hidden passions.

1. SOCIAL REALISM
By Simone Collins

3. CODES & CONVENTIONS OF A SOCIAL REALIST
FILM…
- Working class
characters
- Youth
- Day to day life
- Violence
- Smoking/drugs/alcohol
and sexual abuse

4. MORE CODES & CONVENTIONS
-
Location shooting (not studio)
-
-
Wide shoots
Non-professional actors/actresses
-
-
Semi improvised scripts
Humour and seriousness
The erosion of regional identities
Wider social issues explored via emotional and dramatic individual stories
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Triumph over adversity

5. ‘THIS IS ENGLAND’
•
An Example of film that uses Social
Realism is Shane Meadow’s ‘This
is England’. A film about UK skin
heads in the 80’s. It shows what
they were like, how they dressed,
what they believed in and how they
acted during this particular time in
the UK.
•
This is England has similar ideas to
our film ‘Verses’ because it shows
what culture was like during this
time period, with a young boy who
has a working class background
like one of our characters in
‘Verses’.

6. ‘BILLY ELLIOT’
•
‘Billy Elliot’ is another social realist film about a talented young boy who
becomes torn between his unexpected love of dance and the disintegration of
his family.
•
Our film relates well to ‘Billy Elliot’. Like Billy, having a passion for dance, in
‘Verses’ the main character Declan Mulligan who is part of the popular group at
school and has a desire for poetry but his family have his life planned out. He
meets a new friend, whom discovers Declan’s hidden hobby of poetry which
nobody knows about. They become really good friends which the popular group
don’t like it. However Declan has to decide between his planned out life without
letting his family down and his new friend Adam, and poetry which he would
rather prefer.