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?

Genre are categories or types of media text and are recognised through the repeated use of generic codes and conventions. The iconographies work together to indicate a genre.

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

Watching a film or tv show or even reading a newspaper. Soap opera is also seen to have a particular genre like dealing with a serious situation.

3) What is the difference between character representation in action movies and disaster movies?

In an action movie, the hero tends to be positioned outside a supportive group and he works alone to fight the villains or save the world. Whereas in a disaster movie, the hero is often places the heroic role within a group of people. They all play a part in solving the problems and working together as a group.  

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

Period/country, director/star, technical process, style, series and audience.

5) List three ways genre is used by audiences.

They can use their prior knowledge of genre to see if they like the media. They could compare these text through similar or different characteristics. They can also use knowledge of genre to reject text the6y dislike.

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

Producers attract an audience by loyal fan-bases. They can use production where they use paradigms to not create ideas from scratch. They can also market their text using film trailers.

7) What film genre is used as an example of how genres evolve? What films and conventions are mentioned?

The genre of horror is used repetitively to show how genre has evolved. films like Blade and saw are mentioned key texts like Scarface, reservoir and the sopranos.
The genre of horror can be used to show how it has evolved from gothic fiction to different creatures.

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, The Avengers, Spiderman< Guardians of the galaxy and Batman.

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

They used the character and movie of Superman to show how it has evolved through his popularity where he appeared in animations and live actions. The superhero genre has to fit in with the dominant

values of the day. The ideologies surrounding the typical superman were slowly demolished as time moved on.

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

The superhero genre is a classic as it is still repetitively used and most people enjoy the genre of it.


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:

Train to Busan

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

   I enjoy the genre and the movie for the fast pace thrill given.

2) In what context did you encounter it?

I was looking for zombie movies and came across its popularity.

3) What influence do you think this context might have had on your interpretation of the text?

I would have higher expectations for the genre and storyline as it is highly liked and recommended.

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

I assigned it as horror and maybe even thriller.

5) What is your experience of this genre?

I enjoy this genre a lot most of my movies are horror related.

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

It show the basic themes of horror as it uses lots of gore and blood not for kids.

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

Its quite typical as this genre is widely known and enjoyed through the past and towards now.

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

Should be thrill worth as it has high expectation from society.

9) Have you found any formal generic labels for this particular text (where)?

There is a group of survivors who try to avoid the zombie outbreak. There is presence of violence and guns.

10) What generic labels have others given the same text?

Zombie films that include thriller, horror.

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

You could see the zombies as gore and a lot of suspense included so this is usually see in a violent genre.

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

It expands the ideas of the chemicals that have caused a zombie outbreak and how easily it spreads through the infected by a single bite. There could also be an idea that zombies are humans with no brain and how they were originally created by humans themselves.

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

There is a stereotypical male character who lead this movie however it includes two teenagers where one is a female who fights back these zombies with force. Their original plan is to reach Busan where safety is guaranteed by the Korean military.

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

Train to Busan contains a lot of mixed genre but initially follows the idea of thriller, gore, horror with unexpected plot twists.

15) What familiar motifs or images are used?
Confusion through the characters there could be panic, distress and even memories of their past life.

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)?

This is aimed at a majority of teenagers who enjoy gore and thriller. The ideas of zombies may intrigue a group of people as they like mythical gothic creatures that may appear as the villains.

2) How does the text address you?

I mostly enjoy Korean dramas and zombie gore films that give me a scare so i was intrigues into the movies trailer and how it was marketed.

3) What sort of person does it assume you are?

Someone who enjoys a variety of different movies and series and who enjoys horror. Something fast paced and gives me a thrill to watch.

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

More teenagers would enjoy this genre around the ages of 15 to late 20s . Gender wise, K-dramas have more appeal to women as men just don't want to watch it. there could be a range of ethnicities but mostly Koreans as that's where the movie originated form.

5) What interests does it assume you have?

That I enjoy survival and watching characters fight for their lives. It also shows my strong interest in zombies and the action they carry throughout in order to destroy humans who have not already been infected.

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.

It could be the characters as they are famous and are therefore recognisable among a variety of audiences.

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

Zombie related shows like the walking dead, z nation or resident evil.

3) What key features are shared by these texts?

The idea of zombies and survival of characters who loose people close to them.

4) What major differences do you notice between them?

The direction and way they survive in this situation. It could also be the way they defeating the zombies by killing them.