Fish Tank: Social Realism

Fish Tank - A Social Realism Film

Find two scenes that show the genre of social realism

 

 

Mia dances in an old, run down bedroom, believed to be in an empty flat in her apartment block. Mia is portrayed by Katie Jarvis, and unknown actress. This is the first feature of the social realism genre. She can easily portray a "normal" person that the audience can relate to, because that is what she is. She wears scruffy black tracksuit bottoms and a small tracksuit jacket, both of which create the connotations of being working class, despite the fact she is dancing! The room she is in is very old and run down. The wall paper is peeling and old-fashioned, showing Mia's lack of space to practice and lack of opportunities to achieve her dreams. This is relatable because in modern day society wealth determines the accessibility to resources for activities, etc. The music she dances to is diegetic and comes from the small speakers she plugs into a Walkman. This film was filmed in, and based in, 2009 and to still have a Walkman is extremely outdated, and again shows her lack of money. The music she dances to represents her as "chavvy". It is not classical, nor does it have any lyrics. Mia is dancing to try and improve her skills and also to become better than a group of girls that she knows of. In modern day society youths are constantly trying to impress and outdo each other and this is a perfect example or trying to be good at something because you feel like you must, and not because you necessarily want to. Mia doesn't show much passion or talent for dancing, and when she sees an advertisement for dancers she removes it from the shop window to prevent any competition.