Seen, Tracked, and Trying to Connect: Digital Intimacies and Youth Surveillance in Contemporary Documentary Film
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37130/kxt1fy81Keywords:
film pedagogy, media literacy, digital intimacy, documentary film, mockumentary, Generation Z, social media, RomaniaAbstract
This paper examines how recent documentary and mockumentary films portray the tension between constant digital connection and emotional disconnection in young people’s everyday lives, and how these representations contribute to a broader pedagogy of media awareness. Through a comparative analysis of Imaginary Youth (2024), I Am Gen Z (2021), and The Price of Cheap Rent (2022), the study explores how screen media may teach viewers to recognize the emotional, social, and ethical implications of digital life shaped by surveillance, algorithmic culture, and the commodification of intimacy.
Imaginary Youth, a Romanian observational documentary directed by Ruxandra Gubernat, offers an intimate portrait of three teenagers navigating European mobility and digital modernity. The film functions as a subtle pedagogical tool, encouraging reflection on how digital culture mediates self-expression, aspiration, and vulnerability. In contrast, I Am Gen Z presents a data-driven critique of life online, revealing how algorithmic curation and social media validation loops affect mental health and identity formation. Finally, The Price of Cheap Rent, a satirical mockumentary, parodies influencer culture and performative intimacy, turning its critique into a reflexive pedagogical commentary on the culture of visibility. Together, these films reveal cinema’s capacity to cultivate critical awareness of the affective and ethical dimensions of contemporary digital life.
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Filmography:
Imaginary Youth (Vis.Viață) (2024). Directed by Ruxandra Gubernat [Film]. Hi Film Productions (Bucharest).
The Price of Cheap Rent (2022). Directed by Alice Seabright [Film]. BBC Studios Productions (London).
I Am Gen Z (2021). Directed by Liz Smith [Film]. Global Action Plan/Teemo Films (London).
