INITIAL GENRE RESEARCH

Our first task is to research 3 different film genres, listing the code and conventions and common themes that occur throughout the narrative and trailers. The genres that we chose to look into were: Romantic Comedy, Teen/ChickFlick and Thriller.

 RomCom research (by Adele Tyrer)

Codes and conventions of a Rom-Com

• Two protagonists, one male, one female
• Typical three part structure: A boy and a girl will meet, and for some reason, they will be torn apart. They will realise that they are meant to be together, and try and back to each other. In the resolution of the film, although it might not be a happy on, the characters will meet again and work out went wrong between them.
• Usually meet through a humorous or unusual situation
• Characters need to be down to earth so that the audience is able to relate to them
• Morals and the theme of true love explored throughout
• Audience likely to be introduced to the protagonists best friends or family members. They add support for the characters as well as light humour.
• Audio- known pop songs relating to love
• Usually set in a well known big city such as New York or London, however some films are often set in smaller towns.
• Protagonists may be opposites in terms of social class, temperament

Friends with benefits is a classic example of a Rom-com, below is the trailer.

This is a good example of a rom com as all the key conventions are shown: Set in New York, obstacles to overcome, ending with the couple starting a relationship.

The holiday is also an excellent example of Rom-com , happening at Christmas times, features big cities – los angeles, known pop songs used

Teen/ChickFlick research (by Emily Barnes)

Conventions of a teen film genre

Targeted at teenagers and young adults in which the plot is based upon the special interests of teenagers, such as coming of age, first love, rebellion, conflict with parents, teen angst, and alienation. Often these normally serious subject matters are presented in a glossy, stereotyped or trivialized way.

Films in this genre are often set in high schools, or contain characters that are of high school age. Sexual themes are also common, as are nudity and crude forms of humor

Codes and conventions of the teen film genre vary depending on the cultural context of the film, but they can include proms, alcohol, illegal substances, high school, parties and all-night raves, losing one's virginity, relationships, social groups and cliques, and American pop-culture.

The classic codes and conventions of teen film come from American films where one of the most widely used conventions are the stereotypes and social groups. The wide range stereotypes most commonly used include:

·                    The Jock/Cheerleader

·                    The Princess

·                    The Geek/Nerd

·                    The Rebel

·                    The Misfit, or The Outcast

·                    The Average Girl/Boy (the boy/girl next door)

·                    The New Girl/Boy

·                    The Loner

·                    The Band Geek

Conventions of a chick flick film genre

Chick flick is a slang term for a film mainly dealing with love and romance designed to appeal to a female target audience

Although many types of films may be directed toward the female gender, "chick flick" is typically used only in reference to films that are heavy with emotion or contain themes that are relationship-based (although not necessarily romantic as many other themes may be present).

Chick flicks often are released en masse around Valentine's Day

Some frequent elements of chick flicks include having a female protagonist, thematic use of the color pink (along with metaphorical allusions of the color), and romance and/or dating based story-lines.

Teen and Chick flicks

Teen film genre and chick flicks can be combined. For example mean girls

‘..I'm sorry that people are so jealous of me... but I can't help it that I'm so popular..’

This is a typical representation of a teen chick flick as gaining popularity is a key aspect of a teenager’s life and there will be jealousy between teens as they are on different popularity levels.

Stereotypes are represented throughout the film stereotypes are this is the social classification of a group of people identified as a common characterizes, such as the 'dumb' blonde.

There are many different cliques as you see “the Plastics” the most popular girls, “the Jocks” this is the most popular boy that every girl desires to be with, the “nerds” this is stereotyping all the clever pupils and calling them nerds.

Here is the trailer which clearly defies the different stereotypes:

Thriller research (by Hannah Milton)

Atmosphere	Characters
Aims to make the viewer experience: a higher level of anticipation, ultra heightened expectation, uncertainty, anxiety, suspense, excitement, tension and terror Low lighting is used in the film to create an eerie atmosphere The genre also uses a lot of fast paced music to give tension	Conventional characters are: Convicts/ criminals Stalkers Assassins Innocent victims (often on the run) Characters with dark pasts Psychotic individuals Cops The hero is normally ordinary citizens unaccustomed to danger. The victim is normally someone who is innocent placed into the story because of mistaken identity, misidentification or wrongful accusation.
Storyline
Crime thriller- Ransoms, captivities, heists, revenge and kidnappings Mystery thriller- Investigations and the whodunit technique Psychological thrillers- Mind games, psychological themes, stalking, confinement/ death-traps, obsession Paranoid thrillers- False accusations, paranoia and sometimes action Involves characters that come into conflict with each other or with outside forces- sometimes the threat is abstract or unseen The tension usually arises when the character is placed in a menacing situation, a mystery, or a trap from which escape seems impossible. Life is threatened usually because the main character is involved in a situation that is unexpected.

Shutter Island:

• This is a psychological thriller as it is set on a mental institution
• The audience are uncertain about the plot of the film. Is he a patient or is it a conspiracy?
• They anticipate what is going to happen. What is going on in the lighthouse
• The main character is set up as a US Marshall come to investigate the disappearance of a mentally ill patient
• The main character also has a dark past which is played on a lot within the film
• It is unsure as to whether he will get off the island or is stuck there. Also if he will escape unharmed