Understanding Film Genre

Genre is a classification of any media product. text into a category or type: for example, news, horror, action-adventure, documentary, lifestyle, science fiction, etc. Genres tend to have identifiable codes and conventions that have developed over time and for which audiences may have particular expectations. However, the concept does not just refer to a film's internal qualities, it also refers to the spectators' expectations and hypotheses about the films they watch.

Structure of Genre

Iconography

Character Roles

Narrative Structures

Visual Style

Values and Themes

Examples

Comedy            http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlnUa_dNsRQ

Thriller/Drama http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlnUa_dNsRQ

Science Fiction http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmJOO6D5RvA

               

Romance

Every movie which gets categorized as a romance film has in common the love story between 2 people, usually there's a problem/complication which gets in between, and it has the stereotypical happy ending, although there are some exceptions sometimes, such as in the Great Gatsby movie.

Watch trailer here http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaBVLhcHcc0

Thriller

The thriller genre is different from most other genres because on the surface many of them look entirely different from each other. While there are certain characteristics that define all thrillers, the large category can be subdivided into several sub-genres which have their own distinct formulas.

If we were to compare Casino Royale (2006) and The Game (1997) we realise that in both of the movies there is a lot of action going on and suspense. There is a goal to achieve, a mission, although the story line and the way it has been approached completely differs. In Casino Royale there is a normality regarding what happens, the audience expects the happy ending, there is intrigue, it is a action thriller, while in The Game it's all about how we interpret what is happening; it plays with the audience's mind, the theme is distinct. This is a psychological thriller.

The Game Trailer        http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kqQNBR09Rc

Casino Royale Trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK7PbujRUOk

The Sub Genres

• Conspiracy Thriller

        Only the hero know the truth about a particular person, group, or situation, and he or she must prove it to the rest of the world before disaster strikes and the bad guys win.

        Examples

 

 

The Conversation

                                                   

                                                           The Manchurian Candidate

 

 

• Religious Thrillers

Thrillers based on religious teachings, events, and customs. Religious prophecies, evils unleashed, and ancient scriptures often come into play. At times they can be quite controversial as they examine people's beliefs, not always in a flattering way.

 

The Omega Code

 

 

 

Angels and Demons

 

 

  The Da Vinci Code

 

 

• Psychological Thrillers

         the ones that mess with your head. in these types of thrillers the suspense is character-driven rather than action-driven. Characters play deceptive games and try to destroy one another. sometimes the conflict exists within one character's mind.

 

Freaks(1932)

 

Jacob's Ladder(1990)

 

Laura(1944)

 

Notes

Movement

When shooting a scene there are many important factors to take into consideration. Is this going to be a still shot? Or am I going to choose to put movement into it.  --> Story lead moving, following the action –-> narrative or story lead decision to add movement to the shot.

Pan = side of side, left to right (the way we read) right to left (deliberate to unsettle the audience)

Tilt = up and down camera, to follow or disorientation, good for Point of View shots-helps get a message across and could be male looking at female or female looking at female.

Track/dolly/steadicam = fixed on a track to smoothly follow and predictable or unpredictable action. 

Zoom/reverse zoom = when a camera gets closer/moves away from movement quickly, suggesting surveillance, voyeurism and intense observation: to focus the audience on something in particular. This creates tension and dramatic irony.

Position

The distance between the camera and the subject = the position selected relates to the information the filmmaker is trying to communicate.

Depth of Field = the focal length. When everything is sharp, it is deep focus = clear contest and intent meaning

Selective focus is when you only take one little part of focus on

Focus pull – the focus changes from one thing to another

Which shot are we going to use, how close, what depth of field, what should the focus be, every time one positions a camera, one has a lot to think about-nothing should be happening by chance or accident: this must all create meaning.

Editing

Putting one scene or frame next to another, which creates meaning as we go along-continuity and putting a story together – or by contrasting things, can also create meaning.

Shot duration = how long a shot is going to be open, how long is the shot going to last – usually affect the narrative context. Longer shots of people talking = more of a narrative, dramatic, emotions and romance.

Transition of shot:

Fade to black

Dissolve/cross fade

Wipe

Lengthen or shorten a shot by over or under cranking

Over = speed up the camera, so that everything is slower

Under crank = slows camera, everything is sped up

Continuity

180-degree rule!

30 degree rule which means when you cut and move a camera, you should always move more than 30 degrees otherwise it creates an awkward jump cut-this doesn’t feel right.

Continuity Editing

When cutting on action and movement becomes important to ensure that edits are invisible and images appear to flow in a continuous fashion.

180 Degree Rule: Simple Photo Explanation

Important rule to know and understand.

Editing Time

Preliminary Task: Editing

After filming our short movie we moved on into our next stage which is the editing part. In order to know how to practically use the professional program called Final Cut Pro, one of our Film Experts took as through a step-by-step tutorial. My group members and me evaluated each piece of the footage from the day of the actual shoot. We then choose the best ones and started experimenting with the different editing options. When putting them together we had to make sure there were no continuity issues so that it wouldn't look unrealistic. During the editing session we realised the mistakes we have made while shooting the movie. For example having only wide/long shots before Santiago, one of our actors enters the room where the main action is taking place. It made it look unprofessional and it didn't intrigue the audience because there was no variation. We finished editing in our second lesson and we were satisfied with our final product keeping in mind the fact that it was our first time using Final Cut Pro.