New trends in Spanish-produced television series for young audiences. A case study of Merlí (TV3, 2015) and Skam España (Movistar, 2018)1

Abstract

This study investigates Spanish television fiction starring young people produced in the 21st century. Two recent series for young viewers were selected, namely, Merlí (TV3, 2015) and Skam España (Movistar, 2018). These case studies are used to provide theoretical insights into youth representations in television fiction to explain how the genre has evolved and what have been its main innovations. The analysis employed a qualitative methodology, and text analysis of the series was chosen to reconstruct the key aspects of their narrative and audiovisual content. The conclusions identify different strategies in each series: narrative and aesthetic strategies; and strategies related to production, distribution and narrative extension. These two series illustrate the new trends in Spanish series for young audiences and underline the use of different meanings about adolescence present in current Spanish fiction.