Same Story...Different Genres

• The Glass Key (1941)
• Yojimbo (1961)
• A Fist Full Of Dollars (1964)
• Last Man Standing (1996)

Sci-Fi Horror And Teen Movies On Network TV 31st Jan - 6th Feb

Saturday 31st

The Final Countdown (1980, PG), 16:35, Channel 5, Sci-Fi.
Planet Of The Apes (2001, 12), 21:00, Channel 4, Sci-Fi.

Sunday 01st

The League Of Extrodinary Gentlemen (2003, 12), 20:00, Channel 4, Sci-Fi.
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (2005, PG), 22:30, BBC2, Sci-Fi.

Thursday 5th

Sleepy Hollow, (1999, 15), 22:20, Channel 4, Horror.
Thir13en Ghosts (2001, 15), 22:00, Channel 5, Horror.

What Is Genre

Genre: a French word for ‘Type’.

‘Genre’ is a critical tool that helps us study films and filmmakers, and audience responses to film by dividing films into categories based on common elements. These are know as a genre's Generic Characteristics.

Key Tracking Assessment Task 1

1. Pick one of the following genres:

• Science Fiction
• Horror
• High-School Teen Movie

2. Research that genre and make a list of its generic elements, i.e.

Typical Mise-en-scène: iconography, props, set design, lighting, temporal and geographic location, costume, shot types, camera angles, special effects,
Editing: Fast paced, slow paced, etc,
Typical Sound Design: types of dialogue, music, sound effects, etc.).
Typical Narrative Structure (plots, historical setting, set pieces).
Themes (the underlying messages, ideas, concepts the film deals with).
Generic Types, i.e. typical character types (do typical male/female roles exist, archetypes?).
Typical Studios, i.e. certain film studios are associated with particular genres.
Typical Personnel (directors, producers, actors, stars, auteurs etc.).

3. Make a list of key film text from that genre.

Deadline: Week Beginning 02/02/09

TRC A2 Media Studies Genre Blog

Welcome to the Thomas Rotherham College A2 Media Studies Genre Blog for Unit 2735 – Media Issues And Debates, Section B: Film, The Concept of Genre in Film.

Keep an eye on this blog as we will be using it to provide teaching and learning materials as a support to the college's Moodle VLE.