The lived experience of teenagers in Norway and beyond in Skam

Skam is a television series that follows the daily lives of a group of teenagers in Norway. Every season of the show highlights the stories of one or a few characters in the group. Through these different life narratives, it deals with various themes related to the identities of the characters such as navigating relationships, religion, being lgbtq+, mental health, friendships, and just generally being a teenager navigating life in high school. Heavier themes are naturally embedded in the daily lives of the characters. This balance makes the show both realistic and authentic while still having a lighthearted feel to it. 

The show was first launched in 2015 through a unique format: clips, conversations, or social media posts were posted on a website daily and compiled into a full episode each week. This social media-like snippet format fits in with the current lives of teens. Eventually, four seasons of the show were written and produced by Julie Andem and released by Norwegian broadcaster NRK. The show takes place in Norway, the characters speak Norwegian, and it was originally aired on Norwegian TV, but the show still managed to amass international success. Through what are often fan-initiated subtitles and distributions, viewers worldwide got a look into the life of these Norwegian high schoolers too. The success eventually was so big that it spawned local remakes of the show in the US, France, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the Netherlands.

What is interesting about these various national adaptations of the Norwegian Skam, is that while the versions get localized, the core of the storyline stays the same. Characters in the adaptations get a name that fits the local culture, such as Norwegian Noora Sætre becoming Belgian Zoë Loockx. But where the name and the national context vary, the season where her storyline gets highlighted in both countries deals with her complicated relationship with a popular guy, with themes of abuse and self-image. 

Localization translates elements of the story into a context that local audiences can relate to, but the underlying themes of the show resonate with teens all over the world. The way Skam depicts themes of identity that teens deal with without falling into stereotypes gives it a very realistic and authentic feel which is one of the reasons why the show is so widely appreciated.

Multiple sides of identity in Skam

As the show follows the lives of teenagers, themes that teens all over the world face are present in the world of Skam too. An explanation for why the show is so popular and appreciated by teens in many countries is how Skam portrays various identity themes. It presents these themes in very natural ways, without falling into stereotypes and over-exaggerations, and this positively influences how teens can relate to the show. Since these overarching themes are constructed in such natural ways, teens both in and outside of Norway can recognize them. The themes are encountered in the everyday context and are presented as a natural part of the lives of many teens. 

Skam acknowledges and breaks identity stereotypes in many ways. An example of this is in the contrast between the characters Isak and Eskild. Both of them are gay men, but their portrayal is very different. Eskild is close to stereotypical media depictions of gay men, being expressive, more feminine, and very open about being gay. Isak in contrast to this is not particularly expressive or feminine and spends over two seasons even coming to terms with the fact that he is gay. In the season highlighting his story, it is seen how he struggles a lot with accepting his sexuality. In a talk with Eskild, Isak at some point says that even if he is gay, he is not “like that”- referring to expectations of being a stereotypical openly gay man and the characteristics that come with that. Here Skam both acknowledges stereotypes and the effect they have and takes steps in breaking them by showing more sides of an identity. Isak's perception does not stay this way: throughout the episodes, Isak becomes more comfortable and open in his identity as a gay man. Eskild remains closer to the stereotype, but a one-sided view of gay men is avoided with Isak's story and his different depiction and character development. The local versions of Skam show similar patterns of acknowledging and breaking traditional media stereotypes.

An explanation for why the show is so popular and appreciated by teens in many countries is how Skam portrays various identity themes

The breaking of identity stereotypes happens in many more parts of the story. Isak gets in a relationship with Even, and only times later in the relationship is it revealed that Even has bipolar disorder. A strongly disliked stereotypical representation of mental health problems is that those who struggle with it are often portrayed as crazy. Particular mental illnesses are also often only shown in a one-sided way as if for example depression is only laying in bed all day. Skam does a way better job with this, portraying how Even tries to hide his disorder, how it affects him and those around him, and how he goes through better and worse times with it, again showing a more multifaceted side of dealing with this disorder. 

The identities that the characters in Skam have are not static, they develop throughout the story. This negotiation of identities is linked to stereotypes. As stereotypes of identities are often one-dimensional, they are also seen as something static: you have a particular identity and that is it. This idea is challenged for example with the character Sana whose story gets highlighted in the final season. Sana is a Muslim girl and a big part of her story revolves around her trying to navigate her Muslim identity while also being in Norwegian high school, and having external influences who think differently about religion, where friends, family, and others all expect different things from her. In this wide context, she has to navigate her own religious identity, showing how identity is a constant process of construction. The negotiation of stereotypes and identity happening as a natural part of daily life makes it so that these themes are presented in a refreshing way. It is not always heavy show in terms of themes, they can joke around and portray the good parts of teenage life too. 

Transnational themes, national identity

Localization of shows has its pros and cons. Adapting Skam to national contexts means local watchers might identify even more closely with the characters, as their experiences might be closer to the viewer. On the other hand, it can be fun to watch a version outside of one's known local culture, to learn more about a different culture while still relating to the characters in many ways. Watching Skam is a way of learning more about Norwegian culture. One of the red threads through all the four seasons is the preparation for the russefeiring and the finding of a russebus. This is a Norwegian tradition for pupils in their final semester of high school. These are celebrations that sometimes last weeks.

In Skam, the element of the russebus is very important to the characters. Groups of students form together to acquire a bus or a van for the russ time. In the series, the friend group of the main character girls is formed in the search for a group to eventually get a russebus together. The theme comes back many times in feuds between different russ groups, the search for a fit bus or van, and preparations for the events. Viewers from outside of Norway like myself are often not familiar with this tradition and learn about the lived experience of this tradition for high schoolers through the show which can be very interesting to watch. In the local adaptations, the shows have to find a different way of dealing with this theme that fits with the local culture. In the Belgian one, for example, the russefeiring as the finalization of high school is adapted into a final festival that had to be organized in groups. While the execution differs, themes such as popularity, making groups, and feuds between the groups are present in either version. 

It can be fun to watch a version outside of one's known local culture, to learn more about a different culture while still relating to the characters in many ways

The russ as the main theme is a more explicit way of positioning the show in Norway, but of course, Norway is the context for all that happens in the show. This fact, that national culture is always present and therefore part of one's identity even if not explicitly, is shown by the remakes in other countries. The main storylines of the characters remain largely the same, which shows that the things these teens deal with are universal themes for teens everywhere. But the show cannot be copied exactly from the Norwegian Skam as not all of it would make sense in a different national context. Every national adaptation had to critically review which parts of the story to maintain, and which parts to adapt to make it fit for their country. This shows the intersection between universal themes within teens and the fact that these universal themes happen within non-universal national contexts. While teens outside of Norway will not relate specifically to the tradition of finding a russebus group, the overarching themes of finding a russebus group are belonging to a friend group, fitting in, and navigating friendships, and that is something teens everywhere will know about. 

The portrayal of teenage joys and struggles in Skam

Due to its realistic and multifaceted portrayal of themes that teens deal with it is understandable that Skam amassed so much appreciation even outside of Norway. The show does a great job at portraying a realistic lived experience of a group of teens and what they struggle with, without falling into classic media stereotypes. The show contains both storylines that are usually seen in high school shows such as ‘classic’ teen relationship struggles, but even more importantly also contains storylines that are not as often depicted in high school shows, such as coming to terms with being gay or negotiating the identity of being Muslim and what this means to an individual. No matter the storyline, Skam does a great job at showing multifaceted characters and their process of negotiating various identity themes in a way that many teens everywhere can relate to.

Exactly because it depicts identity issues beyond classic one-sided, static identity stereotypes is what makes the show a realistic and relatable representation, and therefore refreshing to watch. It handles heavier themes such as struggling with sexuality, mental illness, and abuse, but these parts of life are intertwined with other parts of the storyline to create an overall representative but lighthearted show. It is no surprise that Norwegian teens went out of their way to subtitle and distribute the episodes so that viewers outside of Norway could also get a chance to appreciate the show and relate to the Norwegian characters in their own way no matter where in the world they are.