MIGRAIN: Genre

 Task 1: Genre factsheets

Complete the following tasks using the Media Factsheets available on the Media Shared drive. You'll find them in our Media Factsheet archive: M:\Resources\A Level\Media Factsheets or can access them online using your Greenford Google login here.

Create a new blogpost in your Exam blog called 'Genre blog tasks' and complete the following:

Read Media Factsheet 03 - Genre: Categorising texts and answer the following questions:

1) What example is provided of why visual iconographies are so important?

An example is science fiction which uses recognisable iconographies like being set in outer space, using space ships, using alien characters, laser guns and high tech devices. 

2) What examples are provided of the importance of narrative in identifying genre?

In a soap opera and a sit com a serious problem will be approached differently. In a soap opera this will be a long on going story line that develops slowly whereas in a sit com the problem will be solved quickly and will not feel so serious.

3) What are the different ways films can be categorised according to Bordwell? 

• Period or Country, e.g. US films of the 1930s

• Director / Star, e.g. Ben Stiller Films

• Technical Process, e.g. Animation

• Style, e.g. German Expressionism;

• Series, e.g. Bond;

• Audience, e.g. Family Films

4) List three ways genre is used by audiences.

They use their previous knowledge of genre to choose a film to watch because they know weather or not they will enjoy that genre or not

The knowledge prepares the audience for when they start to watch a film because they already know roughly what to expect for example if they choose a horror movie they expect to see a jump scare

The audience is able to compare different genres, they are able to define a genre and find what it is similar to

5) List three ways genre is used by institutions or producers.

Production 

Genres are templates for companies for when they want to produce a type of film

Attracting an audience 

Genres have loyal fan bases that will help attract an audience especially for a new show

Marketing texts

To attract fans and set up expectations of film

Read Media Factsheet 126 - Superheroes: A Genre Case Study and answer the following questions:

1) List five films the factsheet discusses with regards to the Superhero genre.

The X-men franchise 

The Avengers franchise

Spiderman

Guardians of the galaxy

Agents of shield

2) What examples are provided of how the Superhero genre has reflected the changing values, ideologies and world events of the last 70 years?

WW2

3) How can Schatz's theory of genre cycles be applied to the Superhero genre?

Innovation

The visual codes for superhero movies were establishes in comic books

Classical

The superhero genre conventions were being repeated

Parody

The movie does not let the audience take the superhero too seriously

Deconstruction

A new superhero appears with different abilities and backstories

The cycle continues

Task 2: Genre analysis case study

Carry out your own genre analysis using the model provided by media theorist Daniel Chandler. Choose a film or TV text and answer the following questions - brief answers/bullet point responses are fine:

Film: Red Eye

General
1) Why did you choose the text you are analysing?

Because I love the movie it is one of my favourites and I love the actors in it

2) To what genre did you initially assign the text?

A thriller

3) What is your experience of this genre?

I love thrillers because it keeps my attention whereas with other genres I usually get distracted quite easily

4) What subject matter and basic themes is the text concerned with?

Lisa runs a hotel and Jackson follows her onto a plane and forces her to change the room of one of her guests or he will kill her dad

5) How typical of the genre is this text in terms of content?

I think that it is very typical but there is less suspense 

6) What expectations do you have about texts in this genre?

I expect action and a lot of really slow paced editing, I expect for there to be a lot of suspense 

7) Have you found any formal generic labels for this particular text (where - try imdb.com if unsure)?

Thriller

8) Which conventions of the genre do you recognize in the text?

It is not clear who the villain or the hero is straight away and it is revealed slowly. The plot moves really slowly and scenes have a lot of tension and suspense in them. The film also has an antagonist, Jackson, and is to do with a crime that he is committing. There is also low key lighting.

9) To what extent does this text stretch the conventions of its genre?

You may not necessarily feel bad for the villain 

10) Where and why does the text depart from the conventions of the genre?

At the beginning the two main characters seem really friendly and the movie seems upbeat and happy 

11) Which conventions seem more like those of a different genre (and which genre(s))?

The start of the movie seems like more of a rom com as it uses high key lighting and is much more fast paced 

12) What familiar motifs or images are used?

presents the female as the one in trouble

Mode of address
1) What sort of audience did you feel that the text was aimed at (and how typical was this of the genre)?

I think it was aimed at teenagers because I don't think that it was too hard to follow or violent like thrillers usually are

2) What assumptions seem to be made about your class, age, gender and ethnicity?

There is a black man who has headphones on and it listening to music expressively and he contrasts how "calm" everybody else is on the plane there is also a mother who is rocking her baby which suggests that all women are maternal and good with kids 

3) What interests does it assume you have?

Thriller

Relationship to other texts
1) What intertextual references are there in the text you are analysing (and to what other texts)? Intertextuality is when a media product references another media text of some kind.

I don't think there is any but the director also made scream so he might have used similar characters

2) In terms of genre, which other texts does the text you are analysing resemble most closely?

I think that it could be action as well

3) What key features are shared by these texts?

The chase scenes and the dramatic fight scenes 

4) What major differences do you notice between them?

In action the plot moves much quicker than in a thriller

This is a fair amount of work - but you will have plenty of time to complete it (including lesson time). Anything you don't finish this week in the lesson complete for homework. In total, we think this work will take around 2-3 hours so plan your homework time accordingly.