Harmony in the differences through the cinema Young people, love and friendship in literature, movies and TV series The ' FoundationThe Family Watchhas published the study "Analysis of the most watched movies and series by young people of Generation Z (born between 1995 and 2009) on subscription on-demand platforms" (SvOD) in 2023. The report is supported by researchers from the Complutense, Rey Juan Carlos, Antonio de Nebrija and European University of Madrid.
Most of them are young audiovisual consumers between 16 and 29 years old, the target audience of this study. The analysis of this generation is key, as they are the first digital natives, which means that the study of their current behavior in the audiovisual world is especially interesting to understand future trends in the content industry, experts explain.
Strongly growing market
In Spain, revenues from online video services exceeded €700 million in 2023, and in Europe on-demand SVoD services have tripled from €5.3 billion in 2017 to €16.2 billion in 2021. As a result, the share of on-demand services in total audiovisual revenues increased from 5 to 13 %.
Streaming platforms, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video or HBO Max, are the second channel of content consumption for 93.5% of Generation Z users after social networks. Netflix is the preferred paid online audiovisual platform in four out of ten households, followed by Amazon Prime Video, the report notes. Young people spent, in the last quarter of 2023, two hours a day on on-demand service platforms.
Generation of impatience and on an individual basis
The vast majority of young people recognize that they consume series and movies through their smartphones (7 out of 10), then they do it on Smart TV. This is a so-called "generation of impatience", which wants to consume in the most convenient way possible and with the greatest brevity, hence they want to watch series and movies of a shorter duration.
It is important to analyze, according to the experts, that -the viewing format is usually individual, which changes the concept of "family viewing" to become an exercise in individualism".
Role of fathers and mothers
Likewise, "the role of fathers and mothers as the main educators of their children becomes even more important, since they should try to encourage that audiovisual products continue to be viewed together, as this will serve to improve communication in the family and listen to adolescents and young people at home".
Of the 50 characters analyzed, 38 % do not know what their relationship with their families is like, while the two-parent family with children is the most represented (18 %), followed by the two-parent family with children, followed by the two-parent family with children, followed by the two-parent family with children, followed by the two-parent family with children. family reconstructed (10 %) and large family (10 %).
It is surprising, according to the think thank, that "references to families are almost non-existent in the products most consumed by young people, and in the case that family relationships appear, it is in a negative way, to justify current traumas".
However, "in the series, respect and family relationships are promoted as a way to share problems. Friendship and love are above family relationships".
Distorted images
Gema López, professor at the Universidad Europea, considers that "adolescence is a very delicate age in which young people build their self-esteem and self-image. If the teenagers who appear in the series are played by already developed adult actors, young viewers may have a distorted image of what an adolescent body is. This can encourage the appearance of complexes.
Rafael Carrasco, professor and researcher in networks at the Complutense University of Madrid, points out that "it is striking that in the social network X the comments on Spanish series and movies refer to the actors, while in the American ones the names of the characters are used".
"Use and abuse of screens by minors and young people".
Cristina Gallego, professor and researcher at the Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, is concerned about the appearance of "high alcohol consumption mixed with normalized reckless driving, which raises the question of whether it reflects or influences young Spaniards".
Carmen LLovet, Innomedia researcher at Nebrija University, believes that "it should lead to reflection that young people in Spain choose to watch series that do not represent them in age or socioeconomic situation, as if the series were the new aspirational strategy".
Finally, María José Olesti, general director of The Family Watch, commented that "Families have been showing for some years now, especially through our Barometer, their special concern about the use and abuse of screens by minors and young people, about how they manage their image and how it is sexualized, especially in girls, and also about how all this can affect personal and family relationships and psycho-affective development, learning and the establishment of healthy lifestyle habits".
Some recommendations
Among the main recommendations of the report of the family consulting firm and of the specialists are "to encourage critical thinking in minors"; "that the criteria for choosing a series or movie is not only based on the age recommended by the platforms"; "to maintain a dialogue with children before the fictional facts that are represented to them"; when "watching content with younger children, emphasize what is positive and let them see the negative things"; "and with adolescents/pre-teens, help them to question everything, emphasizing not only what is best for them, but the importance of getting to the truth, always from freedom".
