Genre Investigation

By Shannen Leader

What is Genre?

A genre is the way to determine the different types of music or

film.

Music:-

-Pop

-R&B

-Rap

-Indie

-Rock

-Classical

-House

-Opera

-Jazz

-Hip-Hop

-Country

Film:-

-Horror

-Comedy

-Rom Com

-Action

-Adventure

-Musicals

-War

-Western

-Crime

-Animation

- Sci-Fi

A genre is a loose set of criteria for a category of

composition.A kind of literary or artistic work

A style of expressing yourself in writing

Genre refers to the method of film categorisation based on similarities

in the narrative elements from which films are constructed. The conventions that make up genre

change over.

Conventions:- Common elements that reappear in films of similar

type

Genre Theorists• Genre theory or genre studies got underway with the Greeks. The Greeks

felt that the type of person an author was would be directly responsible for the type of poetry they wrote. The Greeks also believed that certain

metrical forms were suited only to certain genres.• Christian Metz is a French film theorist and in 1975 he argued that genres

go through a typical cycle of changes during there life time.

• Genre is a marking tool developed to sell more things. Genre is a natural outcropping of human being’s desire to categorise and understand their

environment. When faced with a plethora of entertainment choices it would be almost impossible to pick what you wanted to watch without genre. The

actual genre becomes a type of short-hand communication tool, so we don’t have to explain the whole plot of the film etc.

• The real issue is negative connotations surrounding specific genres, where people will instantly dismiss a show/film because it falls under that

particular label (genre); However genre on the other hand is a good thing as it helps the developers and producers to market towards that specific

genre which they will know exactly what that target audience is looking for and how to target that genre successfully.

Genre Theorists• Jeanne Hall, a film theorist, agrees with the use of horror

films in easing the process of understanding issues by making use of their optical elements. The use of horror films to help audiences understand international prior historical events occurs, for example, to show the horridness of the Vietnam war, the Holocaust and the worldwide AIDS epidemic. However, horror movies do not always present positive endings. In fact, in many occurrences the manipulation of horror presents cultural definitions that are not accurate, yet set an example to which a person relates to that specific cultural from then on in their life The visual interpretations of a films can be lost in the translation of their elements from one culture to another like in the adaptation of the Japanese film Ringu into the American film The Ring. This deterioration that can occur in an international remake happens by over-presenting negative cultural assumptions that, as time passes, sets a common ideal about that particular culture in each individual.

A selection of film genre

moodboards.

This is the ‘Horror’ Film Genre We can take note

that all of these images are dark, cold colours, a lot

have used the colour red which resembles blood.

With the ‘romantic’ film genre it is very stereotypical, the majority of the images are

either, kissing, hugging, or lying close to a person. The

colour red in this genre represents love, there is a subtle use of colour which

catches the eye.

The film genre ‘Comedy’ often uses a variety of colours and none of the front covers

look repetitive as it can relate to so many different stories

and scenarios. The colours are vibrant which catch the eye.

Generic ConventionsFilm and Teaser

Camera techniques, angles, shots High and low angles to denote power/lack of power.Extreme close up of facial features to show emotions (fear, anger etc) Panning of roomsSlow camera movements to increase suspense Some quick camera movements

Editing Fast cuts to increase tension

Sound Non-Diegetic Sounds; heavy breathing, screaming, scratching, weaponry noises.Diegetic Sounds foreboding music, low, creepy.

Lighting Dark lighting used to build tension, Dark shadows, hiding parts of the ‘Bad Guy’ making him secretive.