You are here:

About 12

Name: About 12
Director: Martín Shanly
Released: 2015
Duration: 75 min

Representation Score

7.2/10

Good

2015

Director

Martín Shanly

Runtime

75 minutes

Average Rating

No ratings yet

New Showbiz Analysis

Juana a los 12 is a character study of social alienation that rejects the standard milestones of the coming-of-age genre. Instead of growth, the film focuses on absurdity and the disconnect between the individual and structured institutions like the school system. The film succeeds in its postmodern critique of capitalist productivity and social hierarchies. By centering on a protagonist who is fundamentally aimless, it avoids the moralistic traps of traditional youth narratives. However, the film lacks high-visibility markers of identity politics. While it explores the fringes of society, it does not provide explicit representation for LGBTQ+ identities or visible disabilities.

Watch this, not that →

Category Breakdown

Does About 12 have LGBTQ+ representation?

Fair

The film explores social isolation and the fringes of society, providing a backdrop for non-traditional identities. However, there are no explicit plotlines centered around LGBTQ+ characters or overt depictions of same-sex intimacy.

How does About 12 portray gender?

Fair

Juana challenges traditional coming-of-age stories by showing indifference rather than typical social or moral growth. Her detachment from institutional success defies conventional gendered expectations of female development.

How racially and ethnically diverse is About 12?

Fair

Set in the outskirts of Buenos Aires, the film features a local Argentine cast to provide a non-Anglo-Saxon perspective. The representation feels grounded in regional authenticity rather than including someone from a minority group without giving them real depth.

How does About 12 represent religion and culture?

Good

The narrative critiques traditional institutions and social hierarchies through a lens of postmodernism and moral relativism. It favors an existentialist worldview over structured social advancement.

Does About 12 include disability representation?

Fair

Themes of loneliness and social disconnection may relate to neurodivergence or mental health. However, there is no specific evidence of characters with visible or diagnosed disabilities.

Present on Screen

Challenges traditional coming-of-age clichés by focusing on indifference rather than moral growth.
Offers a strong postmodern critique of social hierarchies and institutional efficacy.
Provides regional authenticity through its Argentine setting and local cast.

Limited or Absent

Lacks explicit, high-visibility representation of LGBTQ+ identities or queer ability to act.
Does not provide direct or visible representation of characters with disabilities.
Thematic explorations of neurodivergence remain subtextual rather than explicit.

Official Synopsis

Twelve year old Juana goes to a British school in the outskirts of Buenos Aires, where she fails both socially and academically. A week away from the exams that will determine her future in the institution, she is surrounded by the same routine; going to class and trying to pull her social life back together, with useless attempts in between. Juana goes through these strange days apparently feeling indifferent towards the situation.

How are these scores produced? →