Iconography/ mise-en-scene

Iconography is ultimately the use of recurring visual images in movies that convey specific themes, encourage emotions and build the foundation of the films atmosphere. These visual elements such as props, costumes, setting and lighting helps the audience quickly recognise genres or identify character types. These components are also known as mise-en-scene.

Props

In coming of age films, iconography includes the use of technology in various shots, as teenagers can relate to the use of these props. Technology includes Televisions, DVD’s, mobile phones etc. Movies that include this feature incorporated are, ‘Mean Girls’, ‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower’, ‘The Breakfast Club’ and ‘Boyhood”.

Shopping malls are also typically associated with coming of age films as the youth enjoy hanging around these types of areas when they are not at home or at school. This is seen in 'Mean Girls', 'Clueless' and 'American Pie'.

These days, drugs and alcohol are frequently featured prominently in coming-of-age films. Teens are in their prime, and the average teenage audience views experimenting with these products as acceptable. The films ‘Adulthood,’ ‘Superbad,’ ‘American Pie,’ and ‘The Intbetweeners’ include this.

Costumes

In coming-of-age movies, costumes help convey a character’s growth and transformation. Early outfits may reflect innocence or conformity, while later ones signal independence or rebellion. Through clothing, films visually represent themes of identity, self-expression, and personal change. In Lady Bird, Lady Bird’s clothing evolves from a uniform reflecting conformity to more colorful, rebellious outfits, symbolizing her search for independence and self-identity as she navigates her senior year.

Setting

As part of the setting of the film, the protagonist's home and school are conventional places where a film may be set at one point. This is used as someone's school life, as well as their bedroom, reveals a lot about the character themselves in a very short time frame. If the room is entirely pink with teddies, we can imply the character to be girly, childish and soft. Existing films which use these locations are "Mean Girls', 'Superbad', "Juno", 'Clueless", 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' and 'The Breakfast Club'. Also seen in a bedroom may be posters and magazines of the protagonists' interests, seen in 'Fat Girl'.

Lighting

In coming-of-age movies, lighting symbolises a character’s emotional journey. Soft, warm lighting often represents innocence or hope, while harsher lighting signals conflict or self-discovery. Changes in lighting reflect the character’s transition, with brighter light marking growth and darker light symbolising struggle. In Thirteen, the lighting plays a significant role in highlighting the Tracy’s emotional transformation. Early in the film, softer, more natural lighting captures her innocence and youthful curiosity. As she gets drawn into rebellious behaviour, the lighting becomes harsher and more shadowed, reflecting her inner confusion and the darker side of adolescence. By the end, the lighting shifts again to reflect her return to a more grounded, self-aware place, signalling a moment of clarity after the chaos.

The majority of these components are not significant components of the iconography that may be used to recognise the coming-of-age genre, despite the fact that they are all frequently seen. While recurring props may appear in a variety of coming of age films, a phone may appear in any genre, whereas an UFO is most likely to appear in a science fiction film. Additionally, aside from their possible shift in style, characters often wear daily clothing, therefore costumes don't really matter. Similarly, the location is usually a school or a neighbourhood, which doesn't necessarily indicate the genre of the movie; it could be a comedy or even a drama. Lastly, even while lighting can show a character's development, it doesn't provide any significant hints that the genre is a coming of age.