Genre
What is it?
Genre is both important for both the consumer and the media producers. Consumers can make choices about media texts they want to watch and media producers can make a media text for a specific audience. If a media producer wants to target an audience through a certain genre, they will have to understand the codes and conventions and include them within their piece.
There are many different types of genre, which include; comedy, romantic comedy, romance, thriller, horror, crime, drama, action, adventure, science fiction, war, fantasy and western.
Codes and Conventions - The familiar tools used by media texts to communicate ideas through technical, visual and audio techniques.
Subgenres
All different genres contain subgenres which further define and categorise the media text.
Hybrid Genres
Some media text are hybrid genres, this means there are more than one genre in a piece of media text. An example of this would be Dr Who, which is a hybrid of science fiction action adventure-drama.
Intertextuality
Intertextuality is when the conventions of one genre are alluded to in another, or when a specific cultural reference is made in a media text. Film posters or DVD covers use intertextuality when they mention or advertise other movies made by the same director.
The television series Sherlock is an example of intertextuality because it is an adaptation of the original Sherlock Holmes books written by Arthur Conan Doyle in 1887, but are set in a modern London setting.
Factors that effect Genre
Mise-en-Scene within Genre
Mise-en-scene is an important influence on genre, it assists in determining what type of genre the media piece is and helps the audience recognise the genre. For example, if a film was set in a haunted forest, it would be clear to the viewers that the genre is horror.
Narrative
The narrative is how the story is told in a film or television program, through plot devices, situations, characters and actors associated in specific genres.
Visual codes
Visual codes like camera shots, angles and movement can assist in determining genre. For example;
- Extreme close up: The extreme close up is used in both moving image and print texts to focus on one particular aspect of the subject or object, for example someone's smile in an toothpaste advert, or the eyes of a frightened character in a horror film.
- Low Angle Shots: Low angle shots make the subject look more powerful and, even intimidating to the audience; these shots are often used in action-adventure films to make the character seem invincible.
Music: The music used in a media piece have a strong impact on the genre. The audience will associate different styles of music with different genres. For example, unsettling music is used in horror. A piece of music can also be associated with a certain character.
Sound effects: Sound effects can affect genre, for example, laser noises and robotic sounds will be associated with science fiction.
Dialogue: Genre can also be interpreted through dialogue, the dialogue can add description and reference to certain genres through different terminology. (e.g. police references and terminology used in a crime genre)
Voiceover: Voiceovers are used in specific genres to address the audience clearly so they know what's going on. Voiceovers are non-diegetic and commonly used in film trailers and documentaries.
Comments
Post a Comment