Landscape as a signifier of rural social class inequality in contemporary Sri Lankan cinema: An analytical study of three selected films

Abstract

This study examines how surrounding landscape elements of rural settlements function as visual signifiers of social class inequality in contemporary Sri Lankan cinema through an analytical study of three films: Sarigama, Vishama Bhaga, and Paradise. While social class representation has been widely discussed in film studies, limited attention has been given to how environmental contexts of rural settlements visually communicate class divisions. This research, therefore, investigates the role of landscape elements as cinematic signifiers of inequality. A mixed method approach has been followed, and the results obtained from interviews with three film directors and the online survey results of 203 participants, with the primary analysis group being 150 participants belonging to the age group of 19–25 years, were used. Some frames of the film, which highlighted the contrasts of class, were shown to the participants in grayscale to avoid any visual distractions and identify the pictorial landscape elements such as sky-scape, bio-scape, water-scape, vegetation-scape, landform-scape, street-scape, and archi-scape. Audience interpretations were further analyzed using four social class inequality indicators: cultural objects, physical appearance, behavior and speech. The findings reveal a hierarchy in the effectiveness of landscape indicators in communicating class inequality, with landform-scape emerging as the most influential element. Open and elevated terrains were frequently associated with upper-class rural environments, whereas enclosed or fragmented landforms indicated lower-class spaces. Overall, the study demonstrates that rural landscape elements function as significant semiotic tools through which filmmakers construct and audiences interpret social class inequality in contemporary Sri Lankan cinema.