PRODUCTS & AUDIENCES - GENRE

Today I want you to add to your analysis of the product by looking at its GENRE. Genre is the term used for classifying media products into groups with similar characteristics. Some popular media genres include horror, comedy, First person shooters, thrillers, RPGs, sandbox games, superhero movies. Genre is not about format (film/tv/radio/magazine/games) it's more about the TYPE of that product something is (horror film/ cooking show/ games magazine/ FPS game).

Whatever product you've chosen to write about it will fit, neatly or otherwise, into a particular GENRE.  The other term I want you to get your head round today is CODES and CONVENTIONS.
Codes & conventions are those particular signs that we associate with particular genres. Today I want you to tell me what genre your product is and what kind of conventions you could expect to see in any example of that genre,  what defines the genre. Finally I'll want you to tell me if your products fit within any of those genres.

FOR INSTANCE - YOU SHOULD BE ABLE TO TELL ME STRAIGHT AWAY WHAT GENRE OF FILM THIS IS A STILL FROM

 You will probably also be able to tell me the following . . . . 

what are the dominant colours going to be? 

Mainly dark colours, contrasting with some day scenes. Red, black, and dark colours. Gloomy lighting in some scenes so you can’t see exactly what’s going on. 

what will the camera-work be like?

Until the action gets going the camera will be fairly still, although in ‘Paranormal Activity’-style ‘found footage’ movies it will be shaky to give it that ‘hand-held’ documentary vibe. 

where will it be set? 

Set in a location that is in someway lonely, abandoned or isolated, whether in the city (in a family home) or out in the countryside (woods, isolated cabins). 

what will the music be like?

The music will be doomy and droney. There will be frequent use of silence with sudden loud noises to keep audience tense and jumpy. 

what kind of scenes would you expect? 

typical scenes will include scenes of supernatural activity (ghost movies) , violence (slasher movies), cannibalism (zombie movies), torture maybe, a few grisly deaths, a ‘revelation’ scene where the mystery/ghost/monster is revealed, often with a ‘fake’ ending. There will usually be a scene where someone, alone, confronts or explores a terrifying environment (woods, rooms). 

what kind of characters might feature? 

Typical characters might be a hero/heroine i.e the main protaganist, children, their friends (who will usually end up dead), an evil character whether supernatural or just sadistic, also usually an ‘expert’ about the occult/supernatural. 

what kind of ‘cliches’ would you expect in the script/story? 

Typical cliches of horror movies are the fake ending (to set up the sequels), the ‘hello, is there anyone there’ scene, the use of knives and other weapons, and the appearance of things like Ouija boards, exorcisms and a back-story involving childhood/mental health. 

EVERY genre for every media product has a set of codes or conventions or cliches attached to it i.e THINGS YOU WOULD EXPECT TO SEE. 

To do this . . . . 

1. Go to your part about the GAME you play.Tell me what genre your game is considered to be in. 

2. Then put a subheading in - 'CODES AND CONVENTIONS OF [insert the genre you're going to be writing about]. 

3. This is the biggest part. Compile a list of the all the cliches/conventions you would expect to see in that genre of game. Illustrate this list if you want to. For games tell me what do you expect to see on the cover, what's the typical setting, cut-scene, perspective, characters ,screen-info, music/sound-fx/dialogue, menus, control system, graphics, backgrounds? 

4.  Add a paragraph saying whether you think your product totally fits within that genre - does it stick rigidly to those codes/conventions you've established or does it play with some of them (or SUBVERT them)? Does your product actually cross over into OTHER genres? What codes/cliches of those other genres does it contain. 

4. Finally do the same process (steps 1-4) for the FILM you've written about. Tell me what GENRE your film is in. Tell me what the codes and conventions of that genre are - what are the typical settings, characters, actors, directors associated with the genre - what will the look, colours, music, dialogue, trailers, posters be like? Finally tell me whether you think your chosen film FITS neatly in that genre or overlaps with others. 



Where will you find this info? 

Google will be a goldmine - once you've established the genre of your product (and if you get stuck/don't know what genre or subgenre it is gissashout) simply search for 'CLICHES IN . . . ' or 'THINGS YOU'D SEE IN . . . . '. Buzzfeed and other sites have plenty of listicles about these cliches/codes/conventions. Also use your own media use - if you've watched a lot of horrors or played alot of FPS give me your own list of things you would expect to see in any example of that genre.