INTRODUCING GENRE

What Is Genre?Genre refers to the method based on similarities in the narrative elements from which films are constructed and edited in order to appeal to certain characteristics of a particular type such as action, horror or sci-fi to name but a few and furthermore involve a recurring theme that tends to change over time with society and audiences demands. Included within genre can be the setting of where something is shot, the theme which deals with the main idea of the text and format in the way the film may have been shot, which all relates to the genre itself. There is no general type of film and usually all tend differ and are therefore classified into different genres to make viewing easier depending on interests and preferences.

Film Genre ExamplesAction – The Expendables

Comedy – The Hangover

Horror – Halloween

Thriller – Shutter Island

Science Fiction – Star Trek

Romance – 500 Days Of Summer

Crime, Documentary, Drama,

Animation, Musical, Western,

Sports, Bollywood, War, Biopics…

Why is Genre Important to Audiences?

Genre creates familiarity amongst audiences so that they know what type of film they like to watch and what to expect from a certain film genre. Audiences are the main influence on genre in terms of how they’re created and distributed in order to make them appealing upon their release at multiplexes as well disc and digital formats. By including typical key conventions within a film that are linked to a genre, a film will become more appealing to an audience as well being more easier to recognise which will ultimately mean they will end up watching it. If a film was not to have any clear genre to it, it’s likely that few people will even watch the film in the first place.

Uses and Gratifications: Audience Pleasures

Recognising iconographies and conventions due to recurring familiarity

Emotional and physical pleasures in response to certain film genres

Character judging and relation

A sense of community when watching and enjoying films with others

Shifting expectations via manipulated genres

Predictions and expectations being met

Why is Genre Important to Producers and Institutions?

Genre is key to producers so that they are aware from the start of creating a film, they’ll have to follow typical conventions so that the film doesn’t lose its focus. This is also the same so that institutions can pick the correct elements that make up a film such as actors and actresses, props, setting and most importantly, the storyline and script itself. Additionally, when promoting a film in terms of a trailer and any other form of advertising campaign, it needs to be made clear by the institution what the film genre is but to also make sure no story line is essentially given away. Genre all helps mainly institutions but audiences as well, so that supply and demand can be more effective in attracting more viewers.

Genre HybridsA hybrid genre involves the combination of two or more conflicting film genres into one film, in order to create a new type of narrative that keeps both the audiences interested as well as creating fresh ideas. Hybrids have became more popular due to the demand from audiences for new and fresh ideas from audiences and so far in most cases have proven to be a great success. Institutions are able to manipulate the typical conventions audiences would usually become passive to and then create new hybrids. Examples include…

1. Twilight – Fantasy/Romance

2. Shaun Of The Dead – Comedy/Horror

3. Cowboys V.S Aliens – Western/Science Fiction

4. Pirates Of The Caribbean – Action/Fantasy

+ A new breed of film type has been created

+ Audiences react well to the combination

- Opposing genres doesn’t always create a good narrative

- Institutions use hybrids as a way of churning out ideas

Sub-Genres

Sun-Genres are categories of films which originate from a main key film genre such as Horror, Comedy or Action. They use conventions from a mixture of genres so they cant be branded as one in particular.

Comedy/Action/ Adventure - Road Films

Romance/ Dramas/ Comedy - Chick Flicks

Horror/ Comedy/ Science Fiction - Supernatural

Action/ Fantasy - Superheroes

Drama - Biopics

Science Fiction/ Horror - Fantasy

Are Genres Fixed?In terms on typical conventions and iconographies, any type of genre will find it self to have some key aspects that will help institutions make a particular film follow the correct narrative style that appeals to fans of the movie type, an example being perhaps monsters and jumpy moments that are associated with horror films. However, genre of any type has to adapt with the times in terms of society and personal values, whilst in addition styles of filmmaking become more or less popular, as well as technology changing and becoming advanced to create a much more realistic and believable experience. To again use the horror example, aspects of the genre such as blood and gore have fallen more out of favour for a psychological and supernatural style in recent times as demands for fresh ideas rises, which as previously mentioned has resulted in genres being mashed together in order to create hybrids which in itself shows that genre aspects aren’t fixed to a single type of film. Genres have to change so that there isn’t a constant repetition of narrative which in turn would not attract an audience. Some genres can rely on the usual passive key features however most such as horror differ based upon shared cultural values as opposed to a fixed guideline of features.

BibliographyGenre Definition - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_genre

Genre Information - http://voices.yahoo.com/what-genre-used-film-16152.html

Film Genres - http://www.theguardian.com/film/list/filmgenres

Hybrid Genre - http://uk.ask.com/question/what-is-a-hybrid-genre-in-films

Sub-Genres - http://www.filmsite.org/subgenres.html

Genre Theory - http://www.slideshare.net/SEW24/my-genre-theory-presentation