Have you heard about Adolescence on Netflix? Seriously everyone is talking about it. This drama is hitting hard sparking conversations everywhere from Parliament to your friend's group chat. Why is it such a big deal? Well it throws you right into a tough story about a 13-year-old accused of something awful and it does it in a way you have never really seen before .
Adolescence: More Than Just a Crime Story It's About Teens Social Media and Modern Dangers
Adolescence isn't your typical crime show. Yeah it starts with a crime a young boy Jamie is arrested for potentially stabbing a classmate. But the show quickly dives way deeper than just "whodunnit". It is about WHY. What could push a kid to this point?
Writer Jack Thorne and actor Stephen Graham created this series to explore some really heavy stuff. Think about the pressures teenagers face today especially online. Social media is a huge part of it. The show also touches on "incel" culture those online groups that spread hateful ideas blaming women. It is intense and uncomfortable but it is meant to be.
Thorne says it is not just about one thing. It is a bunch of factors. Jamie's parents his school his friends even social media all play a role. He is a kid who feels lost and vulnerable and then he gets sucked into these online messages that seem to make sense to him. Messages about why he is alone why he does not fit in. And he starts believing some really messed up things.
Thorne himself went down online rabbit holes to research this show exploring sites where these ideas spread. He found it was not always the big names you expect like Andrew Tate. It was often smaller corners of the internet little blogs and videos that weave these harmful ideas into everyday stuff like video games. That is what he found truly disturbing.
One Shot Wonder: How Adolescence Pulls Off Its Mind-Blowing Filming Technique
Okay so the story is heavy but the way it is filmed is also a major part of why Adolescence is so impactful. Each episode is shot in one continuous take . Yes you read that right ONE TAKE. No cuts no hidden edits just pure real-time filming for an entire hour. It's a crazy ambitious technique.
Cinematographer Matthew Lewis and director Philip Barantini worked hard to make this happen. They did not stitch takes together. It was all real. This one-shot style is not just a gimmick. It is meant to build tension to make you feel like you are right there in the moment with Jamie and the other characters. It creates a feeling of nervousness and rawness that adds to the whole experience.
Planning was key. They could not just use a normal shot list. Instead they mapped out locations rehearsed camera movements like a dance with the actors. They had to find locations that worked for these long continuous shots. For example they needed to go from a real house to a studio set police station all in one take. It was a massive puzzle.
They used DJI Ronin 4D cameras with gimbals to keep the shots steady for so long. Crowd scenes were a huge challenge too especially with school kids who were not professional actors. But everyone was committed to making it work. The crew used a video team with receivers all around the set to keep a constant signal so the director and AD could see everything during these incredibly long takes.
There were definitely mess-ups and close calls. Lights crashed cameras bumped into walls focus went out but they kept pushing through sometimes having to restart takes after nearly an hour of filming. That level of dedication is pretty impressive.
Behind-the-Scenes Secrets and Swingball Breaks: Fun Facts About Making Adolescence
Making Adolescence was not easy and the team has shared some cool behind-the-scenes stories:
- Started as a Favor: The whole thing began because director Philip Barantini wanted to make a film and actor Stephen Graham helped him out. Their first project together was the movie Boiling Point which also used one-take filming.
- Swingball Star: Young actor Owen Cooper who plays Jamie was super into swingball between intense emotional takes. It was his way to unwind after heavy scenes.
- Vanishing Camera Operator: For an amazing drone shot the camera operator literally had to leg it into a van and drive to a new location to keep the shot going smoothly. If you watch closely you might see the van in the background.
- Drone Drama: That drone shot almost did not happen. Windy weather and a drone crash almost derailed it but they pulled it off at the very last take.
- Location Scouting: Finding the right locations was crucial and involved lots of planning and even mapping out camera movements before actors arrived.
- Voice Strain: Owen Cooper apparently lost his voice during filming due to all the screaming and shouting required for his intense role.
More Than Role Models: Adolescence Sparks Calls for "Radical Action"
Adolescence is not just a TV show it is sparking real world conversations . Even Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has mentioned watching it with his kids. The show raises important questions about violence online influence and how to protect young people.
Writer Jack Thorne is calling for "radical action" not just better role models. He thinks we need to change the culture that teens are consuming online and the way technology enables harmful content. He has suggested things like banning smartphones in schools and a "digital age of consent" like in Australia. These are big ideas that would be tough to implement but they show how seriously Thorne takes these issues.
The show is definitely uncomfortable to watch at times. It is meant to be. It forces us to confront some dark realities about adolescence social media and the pressures young people are facing today. It is not just entertainment it is a conversation starter and maybe even a call to action.