Unit 26 Film Studies

Genre 

• Horror/Thriller 
• Chick flick 
• Fantasy 
• Action/Adventure 
• Blockbuster 
• Romance 
• Romantic comedy 
• Western 
• Comedy 
• Sci-Fi
• Crime 
• Drama 

What is genre? 

Genre - any category of literature or other forms of art or culture e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audio or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time as new genres are invented and the use of old ones are discontinued. 

Horror conventions 

• Suspenseful music 
• Blood and gore 
• Dark lighting
• Silence to build suspense 
• Jump scares 
• Sudden camera movements 
• Sharp noises 
• Creepy music
• Heavy breathing sounds 
• Shadows
• Volatile weather (mist, storms, thunder) 
• Screaming 
• Isolation or someone alone 

Hannah Montana Movie Trailer 

• The length of the trailer is 2 minutes and 24 seconds. 
• I think the genre is chick flick/comedy. 
• The trailer showed Miley Cyrus beginning to like a boy she met an the film appeals to girls.
• all you know from the trailer is that she goes back to her home town and falls in love. 
• The trailer did confirm to my expectations. 

Quantum of Solace Trailer 

• The length of trailer is 1 minute 58 seconds. 
• The genre f the film is Blockbuster/Action. 
• This is the genre because the trailer looks as if the film has a big budget and they have big actors. Its also action because it showed a lot of fighting and the scenes cut really fast. 
• The trailer doesn't give away too much about the story. 
• The trailer confirmed my expectations because I knew that it would involve a lot of action. 

Madagascar Escape 2 Africa Trailer 

• The trailer is 1 minute 50 seconds. 
• The gene of the film is Animation/Comedy 
• This is shown as the whole trailer is animated and a lot of scenes had humour. 
• The trailer gives away a lot of the story and that they will have to stay in Africa 
• The confirmed my expectations. 

Tropic Thunder

• The trailer is 2 minutes 30 seconds.
• The genre of the film is Action/Comedy. 
• There are parts in the trailer where they are involved in fights but there are comedy scenes. 
• The trailer gave away the story. 
• The trailer didn't confirm my expectations because I thought that it would be a serious action film but it is a funny one. 

Hancock Trailer 

• The trailer is 1 minute 40 seconds. 
• The genre of the film is Action. 
• It's an action because the main character of the movie is a superhero. There are scenes where he has to stop criminals and there are a lot of fast cuts in the trailer that shows that the film is exciting. 
• The trailer didn't give away the story of the film because there are lots of parts in the actual film that weren't shown in the trailer. 

Key Elements of Genre 

can be connected to 

• Character 
• Mise-en-scene 
• Props 
• Themes 
• Narrative 
• Setting

The use of these elements allow a genre to be 

• Recognisable 
• Predictable 
• Expectation of enjoyment 

This allows the viewers/audience to enjoy the film they have chosen to see due to genre. 

Genre Conventions 

They act as a basic framework and offer consistency within a group of films. 

They are not used in the same way every time. 

Conventions develop and mutate with time. 

Genre conventions can be used in straightforward/traditional manner or they can parody or spoof them. 

They can also subvert the viewers expectations of generic conventions. 

Sub genres 

Within main genres, there are smaller groups or sub genres.

These films share basic conventions of the larger genre.

They also have their own set of specific conventions.

Often have core audiences.

They are fully aware of the conventions that should and will be used.

Producers 

Used by producers to get a good financial return on a film.

Genre films become established through producers attempts to generate box office attendance.

If its unsuccessful it would be unlikely that genre will continue to exist.

Blockbusters 

have a set of recognisable and predictable elements.

They can be considered as a genre in their own right.

Usually have, huge budgets, big name stars, universal themes, huge action sequences  and massive publicity.

Superhero genre 

The recent run f films that have been generated e.g. spiderman and hulk would not be inspired without comic books.

Genre was proved successful by films such as Batman and Superman.

Action 

Characterised by explosions, fighting and violence.

Made popular in 1980's

Typical stars e.g.  Stallone, Jason Statham, Bruce Willis and Angelina Jolie.

Comedy 

Typically has a happy ending and light hearted stories.

Typical stars, Will Ferrell, Jim Carrey.

Horror 

Deals with audience fears of the unknown.

This can range from supernatural to serial killers.

Typical stars, Christopher Lee, peter Crushing, Janet Leigh.

Sci Fi 

Known for trick photography.

Science based ideas e.g. time travel and aliens.

Typical stars, Harrison Ford, Tom Cruise, Will Smith, Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Romance 

Plot abut the romance between the two main protagonists.

Also referred to as 'Chick Flick'

Typical stars, Marilyn Monroe, Colin Firth and Liz Taylor.

Hybrid genres 

Two or more genres to target widest possible audiences.

Allows producer to reach fans of more than one genre.

30th January 2017 Lesson 3 

1 Cargo 

The genre of this film was horror/drama. It had some of the conventions of a horror film which was that they were in a zombie apocalypse. The zombie at the start would make the audience think that it was a horror film but then the story gradually begins to change and becomes more dramatic. It also had parts of drama because the story was for the man to try and get his daughter to safety. He knew that he would turn into a zombie so he wanted her to be safe. This will make the audience feel sorry for the man and his daughter and will create an emotional response. 

2 Get Off My Land

The genre of this film was drama. The film shows a couple that were walking through fields and then went onto private land. The gun the typical conventions of drama films such as close ups and a mixture of other shots. The short film also had some usual props from drama genres like the gun that the land owner had. The film was dramatic because the two characters that were shown at the start ended up getting killed even though they done nothing wrong. 

3 Jonah 

The genre of this film was adventure. This film was like other adventure ones where the main character wants to explore new things and then he is seen as a hero by others. The character in this film was seen as a hero because he find the worlds biggest fish. The character in this film followed other main characters in adventure films as he was brave and he went into the ocean at the end to try and kill the fish but was eaten.

31st January 2017 Lesson 4
Hunt for the Wilderpeople 

1. Analyse the genre and conventions 

• The genre of the film is mix between comedy and adventure. 
• There are funny parts during the film and then they get lost in a forest so they try and survive.  

2. Analyse the technical conventions and content :

Sound - Music, sound fx and dialogue 

• Music plays at the start 
• The music throughout the film matches the mood its showing
• The piano was played at the funeral
• Up beat music when Ricky's dancing 
• Fast pace music during the fight to show the intensity 
• fast pace music when Ricky shot the wild boar 
• Music playing as they're separated 

Camera - shot types and camera movements 

• Close up at the start on the boys hand
• Establishing shot of the house and field 
• There are close ups of objects in his room 
• The camera tends to focus on Ricky a lot 
• There are close ups of the woman killing the pig and then close ups of Ricky's reaction 
• Close up of the box of ashes 
• Pan movement across the forest to show how big it is 
• Close up of the mans curled up fist 
• Close up of the drawing of his wife 
• Long shot and high angle shots to show the cars and helicopters chasing them
• Zoom out and pan at the end of the film  

Editing - cuts, fades, how story is presented through shots 

• There were lots of fast cuts when she killed the animal to highlight the violence 
• Fast cuts during the fight scene 
• Fades and transitions were used when it showed the police looking for Ricky 
• Different shots and fades on the girl to show that Ricky likes her 
• fast cuts when the wild boar attacked the dogs 

FX - make up, digital effects, explosions 

• on screen text to show different chapters 
• There was a talking burger when Ricky got hungry 
• Police cars flipping over 
• The car crash