Film GenreLiam Drake A2 Media

Genre – Why is It important?

Denis McQuail refered to the commercial and industrial significance of genres. “A practical device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate it’s production to the expectations of it’s customers”So it helps flms producers target audiences and capitalize on the success of previous films because the audience will go to see a film based on previous knowledge/enjoyment of a previous film.Repeat the successful formula.

However

Genre is the repetition and variation of familiar conventions but it is not just a simple means of labelling or classifying films. Genres change over time and hybrids do emerge.

3 Examples of Hybrid films.

Cowboys and Aliens Cowboys and Aliens is a hybrid of different genres. It is a modern day Western with Aliens replacing the Indians. Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford are “Action/Adventure” actors and are associated with that genre. Props are evident in the poster, guns, waistcoats, hats stereotypical cowboy attire. The theme is typica; conflict between 2 sides. Set in the traditional west, again standard Cowboy towns in America. Directed by Jon Favreau with Steven Spielberg producing. This would attract his large fan base to watch the film.

The poster is very conventional, it is what you would expect from a blockbuster feature film. Heavily photoshopped image with an edited background.

Paul Staring Simon Pegg and Nick Frost “Paul” follows a similar comedy level that fans of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz have come to expect. Paul is a comedy film, however its genre is a hybrid of Buddy movie, Road trip film. The characters in the film are flawed, typical, normal British guys who meet an alien who is “more human” than them, which is the source of the comedy.

The film poster is very bright and simple, it is eye catching, however it isn’t what you would expect from a feature film. With the exception of a few conventions such as the actors names and producers.

Super 8 Set in late 1970’s America, Super 8 is based in your typical American city with clothing and props are put the film in its time period. The film is a hybrid of Sci-Fi, mystery, and thriller with undertones of romance and rivalry. Directed by J.J. Abrams and produced by Steven Spielberg the film features many traits of Spielberg's influence.

The film poster for the feature film is more of a teaser poster. The image has been professionally edited and is very mysterious.

Genre changes over time!The broad genre of Science Fiction (Sci-Fi) has

changed a lot over time.

• BladeRunner (1982) • Minority Report (2002)• Inception(2010)Science fiction has always been about breaking the boundaries of technology

and pushing them to the limit in terms of visual effects. BladeRunner was one of the first iconic sci-fi films and was one of the first cyberpunk films. However the special effects are incomparable to Minority Report and Inception who’s multimillion budgets feature groundbreaking technology with fantastic CGI used.

In comparison Minority Report was a hybrid of detective and action with sci-fi as in the twenty first century sci-fi has negative connotations

As “geeky” and many films try to avoid the term.

All the films were large, big budget feature films.

Genres Change

The poster for Blade Runner looks very aged with chalky effects, like illustrations. There is an element of femme fatal , and the sci-fi genre is evident as there are long futuristic towers with bright lights.

The poster for Inception is heavily edited and looks very professional. The hints of sci-fi are created through the illusion that the ground is folding behind the main characters, who are equipped with guns. Looks very modern and sharp.