Educational activity around the short film Alike
Revise and improve the writing you have produced.
Use drawing in all its diversity as a means of expression.
Alike © D. M. Lara & R. C. Mendez
TitleAlike
ThemeCompliance
Genre & keywordsNarrative, uniformity, parental relationship, school, work, social norm
Age (for film)6-11 years old
Duration08 min 01 s
DirectorD. M. Lara & R. C. Mendez
MusicOscar Araujo
ProductionD. M. Lara & R. C. Mendez (Espagne, 2016)
Experiment with the tensions between graphic invention and linguistic code.
In the film, the reflection on the drawing liberties that the child takes with the alphabet ultimately motivates the father's change of perspective. This is not surprising: in writing, the tension between personal expression and respect for the linguistic norm is particularly visible.
From CP onwards, the child learns to master this code (in readability, speed). The challenge is to express your thoughts while allowing their transmission. This is also the moment when he is relatively attentive to deviations in the code, in his production, that of others, in the graphic systems of his environment. It is then possible to start working on “personal alphabets”.
It involves imagining an original design for the letters of the alphabet, producing a sentence or a title with this alphabet, discussing, correcting, improving the result both in readability (understanding the usefulness of the standard) and in expressiveness.
Prior observation of the work of typographers or graphic designers can help formulate the exercise and give ideas. Imposing a simple theme (“musical instruments”, “animals”) or a process (drawing, cutting, objects) is preferable.
This work can result in a project for the whole class (each student is responsible for a letter, for example) or as many alphabets as there are students. In the latter case, it will be a matter of everyone explaining and defending their vision.
Activity sheet written by: Bruno Pellier
