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This study guide to accompany Juno has been written for senior secondary students. It provides information and suggestions for learning activities in English, SOSE, Health and Human Development, and Media.
Introduction
The Fox Searchlight film Juno was directed by Jason Reitman and released in 2007. The film's writer, Diablo Cody, won an Academy Award in 2008 for Best Original Screenplay. The film was produced by Lianne Halfon, John Malkovich, Mason Novick and Russell Smith.
Juno is an 'indie' film that was made for only US$6.5 million. It has been described as 'a funny and savvy comedy about a teenage girl looking for her place in the world'.1 Juno MacGuff (Ellen Page), a sixteen-year-old student at Dancing Elk High School in Minnesota, is a self-described 'freaky' girl who discovers that she is pregnant. After deciding against an abortion, Juno opts to give the baby to an affluent couple who can't have children. Although the film touches on big issues, its focus on how Juno copes with 'things way beyond my maturity level' avoids all clichés.
Before viewing the film
Discuss the following questions in the classroom before viewing Juno.
* What are the strongest influences on teenagers? Family? Friends? School?
* How much freedom should teenagers have?
* Do you think a film can have an influence on our own lives?
* What is your attitude to the issue of abortion?
* How do most Hollywood films deal with this issue?
* How would you expect your parents to react if you told them you were pregnant? Or that your girlfriend were pregnant?
* What would your reaction be to the shock pregnancy of one of your friends?
* Research the scriptwriter, Diablo Cody. Do you think her experience as a popular culture writer and blogger has influenced her ability to script a film about teenagers?
* In mythology, Juno was the Roman goddess of marriage and childbirth; she was the personification of the lunar cycle, representing the life force. She was young but fully mature, and was usually depicted as commanding, aggressive and fertile. Juno symbolizes the female principle and is also the guardian spirit of females and children born in wedlock.2
* Analyse the publicity poster for Juno. What does it...