● “I was dancing when I was 12” – T-Rex – Non-diegetic music that becomes diegetic – Sets the

realist nature of the film and also foreshadows Billy’s love of music. This also is the beginning
of a cyclical film, beginning and ending with Billy flying through the air. Audience doesn’t see
Billy land at the beginning or the end, reflecting his perception of dance, which he reveals in a
simile at the end of the film “It’s like I’m flying, flying like a bird”.
● Mise-en-scene – Panning shot shows a chaotic, messy home-life, with muted happy colours
such as yellow. Symbolises that what was once a happy home has had a shadow or a stain
laid over it.
● First dialogue “Grandma, your eggs”. Soft tone sets up Billy’ s character as kind, caring and not
traditionally masculine.
● Low angle shot panning up towards the police on the bridge reflects the looming nature of the
strike that threatens Billy’s happiness.
● Exchanged dialogue between Tony and Jackie “The whole frigging world’s gonna be on that
picket line” “Don’t kid yourself”. Suggests that possible Jackie isn’t as passionate about the
strike. Other scenes, such as the supermarket and the fight between Jackie and Tony over
Tony’s potential violent acts, support this. Jackie never shows the same level of emotion as
Tony. Could possibly be a distraction from the death of his wife, and a way to maintain a
connection with his son, rather than a genuine belief in the cause.
● Mise-en-scene – Piano in the kitchen: Billy playing the piano, panning up to a photograph of
the happy family, along with the dialogue “Mam woulda let us” Cements that the death of the
mother has occurred as is actively impacting the lives of the characters. The music Billy is
playing on the piano becomes non-diegetic as the scene changes. This becomes a motif
throughout the film, the non-diegetic music being largely dependent on Billy’s action i.e.
stopping when he is shocked out of thought.
● Barrier motif – Present throughout the film;
- Jackie watches Billy boxing through a wire fence, reflecting his disconnect.
- When Billy approaches the ballet class, he is separated from the other students by the
ballet bar.
- Billy is “boxed” in by a mirror when he first speaks to Mrs Wilkinson, symbolising that he
doesn’t belong.
- Jackie also sees Billy dance for the first time through the wire fence.
- When discussing the audition with Mrs Wilkinson, Billy hangs half in and out of the window,
highlighting his misgivings but gets into the car when he decides to commit.
- Billy and Mrs Wilkinson have a confronting conversation through a toilet door when Billy
feels pressured “Don’t blame me cause you fucked up your own life”. But Billy bursts
through the door, breaking down the barrier and for the first time really expressing his
anger.
 - During “A Town Called Malice”, Billy literally dances right into a wall, and slides down it as
the song fades out. Reflects that he isn’t going to try to break down barriers anymore.
- When Jackie finds Billy dancing at Christmas, he walks through the doorway to watch Billy.
Billy responds by dancing for his father. A full shot shows Billy deliberately crossing a line
on the floor, highlighting that this is a deliberate attempt to form a connection with his father.
- Table between judges and Billy and Jackie during audition.
● Diegetic classical background music that plays while Billy is boxing with the bag – Billy’s body
moves instinctively in time with the music. He also follows Mrs Wilkinson’s dialogue that plays
over the top “Hear the music, feel it, and one and two and three and four, hold” “Support
yourselves, don’t look at me, look ahead!” Billy following these instructions so clearly is also
juxtaposed with the more violent, masculine instructions from the boxing coach.
● Allusion – While thinking about attending another ballet class, Billy begins “hat and cane
dancing” with a stick. The scene transitions into a short section of Fred Astaire dancing, and a
voice-over from Grandma “E’was ya mum's favourite, was Fred Astaire” This introduces a
major motivation for Billy’ s choices in the film; his mother loved dancing, in particular a male
dancer.
● Mise-en-scene – The graveyard: High angle expository shot juxtaposing mine in the
background, dark and menacing, and the graveyard in the foreground, green and vibrant.
Separated by a fence (barrier motif). Billy and his Grandma are living in a more bright, positive
existence to Tony and Jackie, who can only see their world in relation to the mine and the
strike. There is an irony in the graveyard being the positive side of the arrangement.
● Mise-en-scene – Walking with Debbie: Omni-present strike posters, police so common the
literally blend into the walls as Debbie drags her stick along their shields.
● Symbolism – When the school boys are doing cross-country, Billy and Michael take a short-cut,
going down a different path to the other boys.
● Debbie and Michael are immediately accepting of Billy’s choices “Plenty of boys do ballet you
know” “I think you’d look smashing [in a tutu[”. There could be several reasons for this; they are
of a younger and more open-minded generation and they are both from less traditional
households than Billy. Debbie is quite worldly “She [Mum] doesn’t have sex, that why she does
ballet, because she’s unfulfilled” and Michael’s father is also a cross-dresser like him. These
influences could also have led to them being more accepting of Billy’s unusual choices.
● High angle shot of Billy looking up the stairs at the other ballerinas, highlights his intimidation
and trepidation.
● “I feel like a right sissy”, “Well, don’t act like one” – Simple comment on impact of perspective.
Billy thinks that doing ballet makes him a “sissy”, but Mrs Wilkinson views being a “sissy” as
being cowardly.
● Arabesque montage between home and ballet school shows commitment, with repetition of
“prepare” highlighting Billy’s commitment.
● Scene switching between the picket line and the ballet class with chaotic classical music
reflects the parallel battles that Jackie, Tony and Billy are fighting.
● “What’s wrong with ballet?” “Boys do football or boxing or wrestling” “What lads do wrestling?”
Not only does this outline Jackie’s gender perspectives, but also suggests that he himself is a
victim of these stereotypes. Jackie knows that boys do wrestling, though he actually knows
more boys who do ballet (Billy) than who do wrestling.
● The background music in the film is so symbolic!
- “I was dancing when I was 12” T Rex – See above
- “Children of the Revolution” T Rex - Highlights Billy’s rebellion after his conversation with
his father.
- “London Calling” The Clash – Played over Tony being chased by crowds of police. Reflects
class struggle “London” aka middle/upper class, coming to put down the lower class
rebellion.
London calling to the faraway towns
Now war is declared and battle come down
London calling, see we ain't got no swing
Except for the ring of the truncheon thing
- “A Town Called Malice” The Jam – Plays over Billy’s angry breakdown after being
confronted about his dancing by Tony. Highlights the impact of Billy’s class and the town
that he lives in on his ability to do what he loves.
● Letter reading “She must have been a very special woman” “No, she was just me mam” –
Reflects that Mrs Elliot didn’t have to be special for Billy to love her.
● Another revelation about Billy’s motivation in the letter “Always be yourself” – Cliché and high
modality – Suggests why Billy is so willing to defy conventions – His mum told him to.
● Montage “We love to Boogie” – Shows Tony, Jackie, Grandma and Billy dancing to the same
song, hinting at renewed familial bonds.
● Swan Lake – Nested story? – Provides insight into Mrs Wilkinson’s motivations and Billy’s
impact upon her life “One night she meets this young prince…and she realises this is the once
chance she has to be alive again”
● Tony’s reaction to Billy’s dancing is actually different to Jackie’s “He’s only a bairn, what about
giving him a childhood?” “I’m not going to have my brother prancing around like a right twat for
your gratification” – He is more protective. This may stem from losing his mother at a young
age, and having to grow up very quickly.
● Christmas scenes – The striking miners have a concert in which they sing a raucous football
song “Here we go''. The song fades into a scene of Jackie destroying his wife’s piano for
 firewood. Juxtaposes the passion of the striking miners with the reality of the impacts of the
strike. Billy asks “Do you think she’ll mind?” and Jackie responds “She’s dead”. Even though
Billy speaks in present tense and Jackie in the past, Billy has accepted his mother's death,
whilst Jackie has not. In the Christmas dinner scene, Tony is separated from the others, only
seen in the reflection of the mirror. Reflects that he is on the outer now, rather than Billy.
● Both Billy and Jackie go to Mrs Wilkinson’s house in the suburbs at different times in the film.
The visits mirror each other, in that when the neighbour’s dog barks, they both jump and
stumble off the curb. This highlights their similarity, in this case as outsiders.
● When Jackie chooses to return to the mine, he is shown walking through huge mountains of
coal. The use of proportion highlights not only Jackie’s feelings of defeat but also the
inevitability of his decision. The big coal companies were always going to win.
● Close up of Jackie’s hands holding jewellery in foreground, photograph of mother in the
background. Jackie’s heaving breath interlaced with Billy and Tony arguing about money. Can’t
think of a technique but just very simple, effective film-making.
● “Why would I want to go to London?, There’s no mines in London” Summarises how Jackie is
the product of his class and upbringing. Lower class, blue collar people are possibly less likely
to be able to travel for pleasure, they have more practical, immediate concerns.
● Ballet School – White marble with black fittings juxtaposed with browns, greens, and reds of
Billy and Jackie’s clothes. High angle shot used to highlight their feelings of inadequacy.
● Billy punches poncy little rich boy when he says “It’s only a stupid audition, there’s always next
year”. This again highlights class differences. This boy cannot possibly understand what it took
for Billy to reach this point.
● Similes used by Billy to describe what dancing feels like “Like electricity, flying like a bird, like
there’s fire in my body”
● Mise-en-scene – Kitchen waiting for a letter to be opened. Yellow is a lot brighter and the room
is cleaner and more well-lit. Expectation subversion – Billy cries and the audience and Jackie
assume he didn’t get in. But he is crying because he is frightened about getting in.
● When Jackie runs up the street to tell his friends about Billy getting into ballet school, this is a
direct parallel with Billy running up the street when he successfully completes his first
arabesque. When he enters the hall, the miners are despondent because the union has caved.
This can also be compared to the Christmas scene, but in reverse.
● Parallel scene of Billy and Jackie at the graveyard. They are sitting on the fence between the
mine and the graveyard, representing a meeting and acceptance of each other’s worlds and
attitudes. He says “I’ve already let your room”. Michael mentions this earlier when Billy says he
might move to London. Is a cheeky nod to the practical nature of the lower class.