“Social Animals: The Real and Digital Worlds of Today’s Teenager” follows your typical teenagers and their usage of social media. It shows their need for approval (posting pictures and selfies and seeking the most likes), online bullying, unwanted attention (teenage females attracting the attention of older men and stalkers), online bullying, and other teenage behaviors that can be seen as destructive.
This movie follows several teenagers in New York City and how they interact in a digital world using social media. This movie shows these teenagers who spend most days photographing themselves and keeping track of the many likes they may or may not receive on their photographs.
Most, if not all, of these teenagers fret over the likes a picture may or may not receive. These teenagers talk of their usage of direct messaging and sometimes getting requests for pictures of “booty” shots. One teenager talks of online bullying to the point of changing schools and eventually making her social media account private as a result of the bullying. Another teen talks of having a stalker, another remarked about receiving the attention of older men with families. Most of these teenagers have parents who won’t let them date yet, but in this movie, they talk about how they use social media around that (i.e. online relationships).
The issue we need to address as parents and teachers is that we need to be involved more regarding the usage of our teenagers use of social media. And I mean being involved by limiting their usage, creating boundaries, not being overly permissive, and educating our youth of the potential dangers of unwanted attention or bullying on social media. Most of the parents don’t set rules or these parents are unaware of such things like stalkers. If these parents do make rules, it’s about not letting their teens date. They then are oblivious about such things like who their children are direct messaging, that they are getting booty shot requests, or they have stalkers
Another key element in this movie is following a daredevil photographer who I believe is 17. I don’t know how to describe the way he gets is photographs except dangerous and him having no fear. He takes photos on such places that are dangerous–places if there’s one slip of his balance….Beautiful pictures, but nothing as a photographer myself would want to risk my life for. He talks of his success, his travels, the business deals he’s made as a photographer, and the huge amounts of cash he’s made (he jokes that when he went to open his first bank account the bank teller thought he was a young drug dealer.).
In conclusion, teenagers now are dealing with similar things I delt with 30 years ago: bullying, the need to be liked, wanting approval, wanting to date. But at 17, I didn’t have an Instagram account or a Facebook account. Also, 30 years ago I didn’t know many teenagers who made the kind of money this dare devil photographer made. Most of us, including me, were working at the mall, the grocery store, or McDonald’s for 5.00$ an hour hoping to save for a car or a school trip to Europe over spring break.
Tracy Kichinka 