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Given

Name: Given
Director: Jess Bianchi
Released: 2017
Duration: 72 min

Representation Score

5.9/10

Fair

2017

Director

Jess Bianchi

Runtime

72 minutes

Average Rating

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New Showbiz Analysis

Given explores a nomadic family's rejection of sedentary, Western-centric lifestyles in favor of a globalized, experiential education. The film's strength lies in its deconstruction of traditional social and educational structures. While the narrative disrupts conventional domestic norms, it lacks specific evidence regarding identity-based representation. The focus remains on the family's itinerant path and their connection to the concept of aloha. Ultimately, the film serves as a study of fluid existence, prioritizing subjective experience over the rigid hierarchies of traditional capitalist society.

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Category Breakdown

Does Given have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film centers around a young family and a father, but does not provide any explicit information about sexual orientation. It is unclear if the story explores LGBTQ+ identities.

How does Given portray gender?

Fair

The story emphasizes a legacy passed down from a father, which might suggest patriarchal themes. However, the family's shared nomadic journey hints at a potential for collective ability to act.

How racially and ethnically diverse is Given?

Good

The connection to Kauai and the spirit of aloha suggest an integration of Pacific Islander values. The family's travels across continents imply a multicultural perspective.

How does Given represent religion and culture?

Good

The documentary challenges Western institutional norms by presenting the world as a decentralized classroom. It prioritizes spiritual and communal experiences over rigid social hierarchies.

Does Given include disability representation?

Minimal

There is no evidence of characters with visible or invisible disabilities within the film's narrative.

Present on Screen

Challenges Western-centric social and educational hierarchies.
Integrates Pacific Islander cultural values through the concept of aloha.
Offers a non-traditional, globalized perspective on family and learning.

Limited or Absent

Lacks explicit representation of LGBTQ+ identities or queer narratives.
Provides no evidence regarding the inclusion of characters with disabilities.
The patriarchal focus on a father's legacy may limit gendered ability to act.

Official Synopsis

A young family leaves their home on Kauai. It is time to return to the itinerant path from which all things in their uncommon lives come; beginning and ending on a remote dot in the Pacific. They nomadically trace continents to places where waves meet their edges, envoys of aloha. It is what they will learn, what they bring others, what they will pass on to their children in the hyper-expanded classroom, the lab of direct being; a legacy passed from a father to his family.

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