Representation of Age and Class in 'About a Girl' - A2 - Maisie

About A Girl File 

• song and silhouette at the beginning signals overall feeling and mood of the film - she wants to move on, doesn't want anyone else. Restricted narration of seeing the girl's face, shows her independence 

• her accent establishes where she's from - working class, poverty stricken. When speaking to her dad, she's very confident and talks back to him. Sometimes forgets the names of simple things, uneducated, reflects working class area. When they're in the cafe, the dad says 'you can't come and live with me' showing that the parents have split up, so the girl comes from a broken family. The two shot is very wide, showing the distance between them as a father and daughter, backed by their heated conversation

• as she explains her family and parents, she speaks very lowly about them - links back to the song, doesn't need them 

• the setting/her clothing also shows the area where she's from - graffiti, dark lighting, rubbish, a shady and dark town, working class/poverty. She's wearing a white coat, not a fashionable hairstyle, large cheap earrings, shows she comes from a poorer family. Large aspirations, very common for children from working class families. Says her mother eats cheap food and the father doesn't work, establishing they live off low income from benefits

• the swearing linked with her age shows how independent she is - most 13-year-olds don't swear due to a good upbringing, but it shows that her parents aren't a good influence. She is very rebellious, links to her apparent independence, wants to be famous and 'show everyone', doesn't want to be what she is now

• facial expression and body language - she speaks loudly and confidently, and her posture is confident, shows she wants to be independent and she's quite cocky, feels she can fend for herself

• singing on the bus - loud, confident, no adult supervision, shows their independence. Girl looks like she's in charge, show's she is independent but still powerful 

• editing and handheld camera - the jump cuts throughout her dialogue show her rapid thoughts, reflecting how a teenager thinks. The sound is continuous, however the jump cuts show different locations. This contrasts the shots in the flashbacks; all one shots, minimum of one cut. The handheld movement implies that someone is watching her, a possible friend, and this incorporates the audience. The camera is held at a low angle, which gives her dominance and adds to her confidence and independence. No music, just her speaking, all focus on her dialogue

• underwater shot of bag - the ambient sound of the canal is eerie and adds to the dark mood. Worm's eye view of baby falling down to the bottom of the canal, blood, shocking to audience, reveals more about her, challenges the audience to feel either sorry for her or no empathy because it's her fault that this happened

Key:

• Blue = mise en scene
• Red = sound
• Orange = editing
• Green = camerawork
• Purple = representation