Genre: blog tasks
Genre: blog tasks
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
Read Media Factsheet 03 - Genre: Categorising texts and answer the following questions:
1) What example is provided of why visual iconographies are so important?
The examples that are provided for why visual iconographies are so important is the film Star Trek and Star Wars. They both have bold iconographies which convey the themes of nature and also the genre of the film which is sci-fi.
2) What examples are provided of the importance of narrative in identifying genre?
The example that is provided of the importance of narrative in identifying genre is Independence Day (1996: dir. R. Chimeric), Deep Impact (1998: M. Leder) and, more recently, The Day After Tomorrow (2004: dir. R. Emmerich). In The Day After Tomorrow a father has two goals: to persuade the government to act on his advice and then to rescue his son. In both plots he accepts the help of others e.g. accepting information from other scientists or letting his colleagues accompany him as he travels to New York where his son is trapped.He is shown putting his trust in others and accepting the need for cooperation in order to solve the problems he faces.The representation of heroes is a part of the codes and conventions of the genres.
3) What is the difference between character representation in action movies and disaster movies?
The difference between character representation in action movies and disaster movies is characters, including the use of stereotypes and character roles, are also part of the narrative of texts. Certain stereotypes tend to be linked to specific genres. The ’lone wolf’ hero, for example is a convention of an action text. Here the hero tends to be positioned outside a supportive group and he works alone to fight the villains or save the world. James Bond may be a member of MI6 but he is always sent on missions alone and is often seen as being unconventional.
Jack Bauer of 24 is another stereotypical ‘lone wolf’ action hero and he is often depicted making decisions that could be seen as immoral. However his unconventional responses tend to enable him to get the job done.
Jack Bauer of 24 is another stereotypical ‘lone wolf’ action hero and he is often depicted making decisions that could be seen as immoral. However his unconventional responses tend to enable him to get the job done.
4) What are the different ways films can be categorised according to Bordwell?
5) List three ways genre is used by audiences.
1 - They use their prior knowledge of the genre to anticipate whether or not they are likely to enjoy a text. This helps when selecting a media text whether it is a lifestyle magazine, a film or a television programme.
2 - They are able to compare a text through its shared characteristics with another. If you try to describe a TV programme to someone who has not seen it, you are likely to define its genre and then clarify what other text it is similar to.3) They also use their knowledge of genre to reject a text. For many of us there will be genres we actively dislike and therefore will avoid accessing texts we assume to hold those characteristics.
The different ways films can be categorised according to Bordwell is:
• 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 Film
The three ways genre is used by audiences is:
1 - They use their prior knowledge of the genre to anticipate whether or not they are likely to enjoy a text. This helps when selecting a media text whether it is a lifestyle magazine, a film or a television programme.
2 - They are able to compare a text through its shared characteristics with another. If you try to describe a TV programme to someone who has not seen it, you are likely to define its genre and then clarify what other text it is similar to.3) They also use their knowledge of genre to reject a text. For many of us there will be genres we actively dislike and therefore will avoid accessing texts we assume to hold those characteristics.
6) List three ways genre is used by institutions or producers.
1) Production Genres are paradigms or templates media producers can follow. If a media producer wants to produce a new sit-com, there are certain ’rules’ that must be followed. This actually makes life easier for writers and producers as they don’t have to invent things from scratch. They can also look to successful examples of the genre and attempt to replicate what was popular and, of course, avoid the mistakes made by texts which have disappointed the audience.
2) Attracting an Audience Some genres have loyal fan-bases. People will try out a new sitcom simply because it’s a new sit-com and this can help media producers minimise the potential for failure.
3) Marketing Texts Good examples of this are film trailers which usually attempt to clearly define the genre of the film and then show as many of the codes and conventions in the trailer. This acts to attract fans of the genre and set up the expectations of the film.
Other media producers do the same. As cable TV has developed, specialised channels, e.g. Paramount, The Horror Channel and Sci Fi, have found that by broadcasting generic texts they are able to market solely through attracting interested audiences to very specific programmes. On terrestrial television this occurs in the way channels use scheduling. There are specific times of the day when certain genres tend to be shown – for example, 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. are the conventional screening times for dramas on British television.
Given the vast amount of choice now available on television, this makes the complicated job of finding a text easier for the audience and also helps the channels market their programmes effectively.
The three ways genre is used by institutions or producers is:
1) Production Genres are paradigms or templates media producers can follow. If a media producer wants to produce a new sit-com, there are certain ’rules’ that must be followed. This actually makes life easier for writers and producers as they don’t have to invent things from scratch. They can also look to successful examples of the genre and attempt to replicate what was popular and, of course, avoid the mistakes made by texts which have disappointed the audience.
2) Attracting an Audience Some genres have loyal fan-bases. People will try out a new sitcom simply because it’s a new sit-com and this can help media producers minimise the potential for failure.
3) Marketing Texts Good examples of this are film trailers which usually attempt to clearly define the genre of the film and then show as many of the codes and conventions in the trailer. This acts to attract fans of the genre and set up the expectations of the film.
Other media producers do the same. As cable TV has developed, specialised channels, e.g. Paramount, The Horror Channel and Sci Fi, have found that by broadcasting generic texts they are able to market solely through attracting interested audiences to very specific programmes. On terrestrial television this occurs in the way channels use scheduling. There are specific times of the day when certain genres tend to be shown – for example, 9 p.m. and 10 p.m. are the conventional screening times for dramas on British television.
Given the vast amount of choice now available on television, this makes the complicated job of finding a text easier for the audience and also helps the channels market their programmes effectively.
7) What film genre is used as an example of how genres evolve? What films and conventions are mentioned?
• psychological horrors (Saw (2004, dir. J. Wan)),
• gothic horrors (Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992: dir. F. Coppola)),
• ghost stories (The Grudge (2004: dir. T. Shimuzu)),
• the teen slasher (Scream (1996: dir. W. Craven)),
• haunted-house movies (The Amityville Horror (2005: dir. A. Douglas)).
The conventions that are mentioned are that each one of these sub-genres has a whole host of codes and conventions of their own. Iconographies like crosses, holy water, graveyards and gothic mansions are part of the vampire sub-genre (and are within horror codes) but are not necessarily included in the teen slasher film.
Add to this the fact that there are also hybrid genres. These are texts which deliberately mix the codes and conventions of more than one genre. Buffy the Vampire Slayer successfully blended codes of the gothic horror, comedy, romance and soap opera and so provided many different viewing pleasures for its audience.
1) List five films the factsheet discusses with regards to the Superhero genre.
2) What examples are provided of how the Superhero genre has reflected the changing values, ideologies and world events of the last 70 years?
3) How can Schatz's theory of genre cycles be applied to the Superhero genre?
Finally, 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:
General
1) Why did you choose the text you are analysing?
2) In what context did you encounter it?
3) What influence do you think this context might have had on your interpretation of the text?
4) To what genre did you initially assign the text?
5) What is your experience of this genre?
6) What subject matter and basic themes is the text concerned with?
7) How typical of the genre is this text in terms of content?
8) What expectations do you have about texts in this genre?
9) Have you found any formal generic labels for this particular text (where)?
10) What generic labels have others given the same text?
11) Which conventions of the genre do you recognize in the text?
12) To what extent does this text stretch the conventions of its genre?
13) Where and why does the text depart from the conventions of the genre?
14) Which conventions seem more like those of a different genre (and which genre(s))?
15) What familiar motifs or images are used?
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)?
2) How does the text address you?
3) What sort of person does it assume you are?
4) What assumptions seem to be made about your class, age, gender and ethnicity?
5) What interests does it assume you have?
Relationship to other texts
1) What intertextual references are there in the text you are analysing (and to what other texts)?
2) Generically, which other texts does the text you are analysing resemble most closely?
3) What key features are shared by these texts?
4) What major differences do you notice between them?
The film genre that is mentioned as an example of how genres evolve is the horror category.
The films that are mentioned are:
• vampire movies (Blade (1998: dir. S. Norrington)), • psychological horrors (Saw (2004, dir. J. Wan)),
• gothic horrors (Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992: dir. F. Coppola)),
• ghost stories (The Grudge (2004: dir. T. Shimuzu)),
• the teen slasher (Scream (1996: dir. W. Craven)),
• haunted-house movies (The Amityville Horror (2005: dir. A. Douglas)).
The conventions that are mentioned are that each one of these sub-genres has a whole host of codes and conventions of their own. Iconographies like crosses, holy water, graveyards and gothic mansions are part of the vampire sub-genre (and are within horror codes) but are not necessarily included in the teen slasher film.
Add to this the fact that there are also hybrid genres. These are texts which deliberately mix the codes and conventions of more than one genre. Buffy the Vampire Slayer successfully blended codes of the gothic horror, comedy, romance and soap opera and so provided many different viewing pleasures for its audience.
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.
2) What examples are provided of how the Superhero genre has reflected the changing values, ideologies and world events of the last 70 years?
3) How can Schatz's theory of genre cycles be applied to the Superhero genre?
Finally, 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:
General
1) Why did you choose the text you are analysing?
2) In what context did you encounter it?
3) What influence do you think this context might have had on your interpretation of the text?
4) To what genre did you initially assign the text?
5) What is your experience of this genre?
6) What subject matter and basic themes is the text concerned with?
7) How typical of the genre is this text in terms of content?
8) What expectations do you have about texts in this genre?
9) Have you found any formal generic labels for this particular text (where)?
10) What generic labels have others given the same text?
11) Which conventions of the genre do you recognize in the text?
12) To what extent does this text stretch the conventions of its genre?
13) Where and why does the text depart from the conventions of the genre?
14) Which conventions seem more like those of a different genre (and which genre(s))?
15) What familiar motifs or images are used?
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)?
2) How does the text address you?
3) What sort of person does it assume you are?
4) What assumptions seem to be made about your class, age, gender and ethnicity?
5) What interests does it assume you have?
Relationship to other texts
1) What intertextual references are there in the text you are analysing (and to what other texts)?
2) Generically, which other texts does the text you are analysing resemble most closely?
3) What key features are shared by these texts?
4) What major differences do you notice between them?
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