Social Realism (Conventions and History)

Conventions:

Social realism is a film genre which focuses on giving the audience a true indication of what life is like. Film makers such as Shane Meadows, Ken Loach and Mike Leigh. Social realism films may include drugs, violence, crime etc...

Social realistic films portray attitudes and life factorsoccurring at that period in time. They often representworking class characters living through a struggle andgenerally exhibit them as a protagonist. Often, thedirectors of social realistic films want to depict a typeof social injustice, such as: economic hardship,discrimination or political injustice. The main forms and conventions are; the use of unknown actors. This supports the social realism genre because the actors could be anyone which makes it realistic for the audience. Social class is a highly important convention of social realism films as most social realism films deal with the working class like Billy Elliot directed by Steven Daldry and This is England directed by Shane Weadows. The locations also link to this social class convention, as most locations are set in working class areas. Involving council estates, run down areas etc... Typically, a social realism films would deal with issues like drugs, sex, crime, poverty, prostituion and general criminal activity. In regards to age, the common convention for social realism films is to use young actors as their protagonists. For example, 'This is England', 'Kes', 'kidulthood', 'top boy' all use teenage protagonists.

Common Conventions of Social realism films:

• Use of unknown, teenage actors - 'The sixteen' and 'This is England' all have main characters that support the social realist genre because they are between these ages. The actors could be anyone which makes it realistic. 
• Social class - this is a very important form and convention as most social realist films deal with the working class like 'Billy Elliot' and 'This is England'. 
• The locations - social realism film are usually set around a council estate or run down areas of different cities, but also can be a nice neighbourhood.
•  Usually a social realism film deals with issues like drugs, sex, poverty, prostitution, homosexuality, alcoholism and crime. Social realism films usually involve political views and religious views e.g 'This is England' and the hatred for Maggie Thatcher. 
• Semi Improvised scripts - Sometimes directors such as Ken Loach use semi-improvised scripts to make the film have a more realistic feel and dialogue. He used this in the film Kes' and 'Sweet Sixteen' 

History:

Warp Films are a prime example of a production company that incorporate social realism into their films. Films such as This is England, Dead man's Shoes, Tyrannosaur, Four Lions,  all involve a working class setting.