FILM DISCUSSION GUIDE

Lady Bird
US | 2017 | 94 mins | Dir: Greta Gerwig | Cert. 15 | Engaging for ages 16+
Curriculum links: Film Studies, Music, PSHE, Psychology

IAC Films © (2017) All rights reserved.

Lady Bird
 Lady Bird
US | 2017 | 94 mins | Dir: Greta Gerwig | Cert. 15 | Engaging for ages 16+
Curriculum links: Film Studies, Music, PSHE, Psychology

Christine “Lady Bird” McPherson is a strong-willed

seventeen-year-old from the wrong side of the tracks in
Sacramento, California, intent on leaving as soon as she
graduates from her Catholic high school. Set in the early
2000s, the film takes place during her senior year where
she experiences first love, joins the school musical and
applies for college. During these formative months, Lady
Bird must also contend with the tempestuous
relationship she shares with her candid mother, as her
father attempts to build a bridge between the two
despite being jobless and battling depression.

Lady Bird
 Talk about it
before the film

What would the soundtrack

to your own coming-of-age
film be? What songs have
made an impact on you at
different stages of your life
and why?

IAC Films © (2017) All rights reserved.

Lady Bird
 Discussion points

1. How would you describe the relationship between

Christine and her mother, Marion? How does Lady
Bird interact with her father and other characters?
2. How important is the setting of 2002 Sacramento to
the film? Why is this the case? What clues are there
of the autobiographical nature of the film?
3. What traditional teenage experiences does Lady Bird
go through during the film? How are these treated
differently or similarly to other coming-of-age films?
4. How does the tone of the film balance comedic,
dramatic and melancholic elements? Can you think
of examples?

Lady Bird
 Extension activities

Conduct research into a female filmmaker of your

choice. What films have they made? What do you like or
dislike about them? Present your findings to the group.

For inspiration, see our Female Filmmakers film list:

https://www.intofilm.org/films/filmlist/19
And our Lady Bird-inspired blog – Top 10 Debut Feature
Films by Women:
https://www.intofilm.org/news-and-views/articles/lady-
bird-debut-female-filmmakers-feature

Lady Bird
 Write about it

Bring your ideas together in a review and

share it on our Into Film clubs’ website. You
could include a summary of the story, mention
other films that it’s similar to, describe what
you particularly liked or disliked and give it
your star rating.

Lady Bird
 Watch next
The Edge of Seventeen
2016 | Cert. 15 | Engaging for ages 14+

A high-schooler without many friends

has her life turned upside down when
her best friend starts dating her
older brother.
Sony © (2016) All rights reserved.

20th Century Women

2016 | Cert. 15 | Engaging for ages 14+

American indie comedy exploring the

ups and downs of a mother bringing
up her teenage son at the end of the
1970s.
Annapurna Pictures © (2016) All rights reserved.

Lady Bird