Boarding School Location

We researched boarding school locations as, although they are often similar, we wanted to ensure that our location reflected common perceptions of boarding and private school girls.

In 'Cracks', the boarding school has large grounds of green grassy areas, suggesting it is rural. The building is old fashioned and large, with paths and stairs surrounding it in the areas. It appears very old fashioned, showing the large part that the idea of tradition plays on boarding school representations.

The 'St Trinians' school building is similar to that of 'Cracks' in that it is large and old fashioned. It consists of brickwork, turrets and detailed architecture that suggests the wealthy nature of the students that attend it. It also has large grounds. However, although the building would normally suggest a strict and moral code of conduct in the school, the 'St Trinians' students are shown to be disrespectful and often cause damage to the building. Despite this, it is clear that the setting of the school is still that of a large old building.

Although part of a fantasy franchise and created by special effects due to its huge scale, the castle of Hogwarts in the 'Harry Potter' films uses the same idea of boarding school settings. It uses old and detailed architecture that involves turrets, ornate windows and brickwork in order to show it as a well-established and respected place. While also showing the magical nature of the place, the location could be said to create ideas of mysteries and relate to gothic ideas, which could also apply to our trailer. The grounds of the school are also large and widespread.

Through looking at boarding schools in film we could clearly see that a large old fashioned building would be needed in order to suggest that the girls go to a boarding or private school. This led us to the use of Tonbridge Boys' School, as it has ornate architecture and large grounds that show the wealth of the girls and the prestige of the learning environment. It also connotes some gothic ideas such as that of castles, which could link into the interests of the girls and support their use of the ouija board. The building would suggest that the girls are well behaved and respectable students, but the trailer introduces them as rejecting the authority of the school by not obeying a strict dress code and committing corrupt acts such as smoking. This therefore shows their unscrupulous characters which is emphasised through the party scene and makes them less likeable so that the audience may understand why they are being haunted.

-Emily




 Also see... Shots of School