John Hughes Director case study

BiographyBorn: 18th February 1950, in Michigan Died: 6th August 2009Film director, producer, and screenwriterKnown for his work on coming-of-age/teen filmsKnown for helping launch the careers of numerous actors, including Michael Keaton, Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Bill Paxton, Matthew Broderick, Macaulay Culkin, and the Brat Pack group  

Narratives of his filmsCharacters defying their own stereotypes, breaking

out of the moulds society has placed on themPortrayed teenagers as real human beings

(emotionally complex)The Binary opposite of parents vs. childrenPositive endingsMost of his films were set around ChicagoMost dealt with a range of serious topics (e.g.

divorce, bullying) but Hughes’ used comedy to captivate the audience’s attention whilst allowing them to understand the morals of the stories

Film stylesMusicRely significantly on pop music (often meaningful) to help tell stories that blend comedy and dramaLightingColourful illumination to reflect mood and tone, sometimes the moods of charactersMise-en-scène Many small details that would not be noticed the first time a film is watched, these also support Hughes' motives and the meanings of his filmsHis films usually end with a still image to mark the momentMany of his films have extra scenes after the credits

Casting choicesSixteen Candles (1984)Molly RingwaldAnthony Michael HallThe Breakfast Club (1985)Emilio EstevezJudd NelsonMolly RingwaldAlly SheedyWeird Science (1985)Anthony Michael Hall- In similar films that Hughes’ wrote (not directed), like Pretty in Pink, more actors/actresses were re-used