Paper short abstract:

In this paper I analyse media representations of youth culture and the phenomenon of extended adolescence in the context of post-socialist Serbia.

Paper long abstract:

The paper analyses Morning Changes Everything, a Serbian television series that debuted in the fall of 2018. It is a story about the everyday lives of Belgraders in their 30s who have finished their education but who still have not started a family or found a permanent job. In other words, this TV series represents the prolonged transition to adulthood of four main characters living in a transitional society. Morning Changes Everything depicts the various problems young people face in the context of post-socialist Serbia, notably the loss of stability and opportunities, inability to find permanent employment, move out of parental households and gain independence, and the dilemma of whether to emigrate from Serbia or to stay. The paper examines how this series portrays youth culture (and the phenomenon of extended adolescence) and how the process of becoming an adult is conceptualized in Serbian popular culture, especially in regard to the structural and cultural changes in Serbian society over the last three decades.