The link below is for the KLS media department's power point on genre as a media concept;
KLS Media Department - Genre as a Media Concept
The first discussion we had was about Robert Altman's views on genres. One of his theories is "That genres are defined by producers and are easily recognised by audiences" In many ways this is very true. This is because producers choose the actors for their films which tells the audience what genre of film they are producing. For example if a film stars Bruce Willis or Arnold Schwarzenegger you know it's going to be an action film. We also discussed about how genres develop in predictable ways. This was one of Robert Altman's Theories and in many cases could not be doubted. For instance a romance genre film would usually start with a slow beginning leading to something dramatic happening in the middle ending in a romantic fairy tale. However as a group we did not agree with all of his ideas. Altman believed "That texts 'belong' clearly to a particular genre in each case" We disagreed strongly on this as many films can be perceived as many different genres in one. An example of a film is 'Titanic' which is a romance and disaster film. One quote from Altman that could be linked with our AS media project 'Thug Britain' is "That genres are ideological". This is because we specifically made our opening scene in a different way to draw the attention of a younger audience. Drug related deals, interesting locations and music were all used in our opening scene to attract the audience we wanted. I believe we done this pretty successfully however looking back would have changed a lot.
The next discussion the group had was thoughts about Genre. We looked at a Robert Altman question "Should we read genre as a noun or adjective" After a short vote we came up with the idea that genre is an adjective. An adjective is a describing word so looking at it from an audience point of view this is what a genre is.
After this we had a debate on where you would find tomato puree in a supermarket. Most people had very different ideas to where the puree would be found in a supermarket. After this we were then asked; "What would happen to this item if it were shelved in another part of the shop" and "Would the thing itself be any different" After talking we decided it is a big factor to where the tomato puree is placed in the supermarket. For instance if it was put with all the other tomato products would people still buy it? In relation to film and genre in if something is changed will it change something else? For instance if Taylor Lautner was not in Twilight would as many girls watch it? Or if the Football Factory made a squeal to the first film without Danny Dyer would many men bother going to the cinema to view it. The tomato puree is a great example of how one little difference like changing something could make a huge difference.
The final slide we looked at was Neale and Hartley's views on genre theory. Neale's theory is genre theory leads to 'regulated variety' while on the other hand Hartley describes a contract between producer and audience which 'disciplines' choices and reduces desires. In a way I can agree with both, this is because as an audience we have a lot of power over the film industry. With so many films produced there is a greater choice for an audience to choose what they want to see. Film producers know this and work with audiences to help make their film more desirable.
After looking at Genre it has helped me to see where I went wrong in the making of my opening sequence at AS. One way I think we could have improved is to have played on stereotypes. I think we tried to do this with the outfits we chose however looking back maybe should have done the kitchen scene in a different location. This is because it was a bit weird the pair lived in a house while struggling for money. I fell this confused the viewing audience and would have changed this if I had the chance. Considering we only had two minutes to play on stereotypes would have helped us story tell better.
My new understanding on Genre will help me greatly in my A2 short film. I have learnt it is the little parts that make big differences for instance one actor can make the whole film a success. I feel for our AS we had two very good actors which also helped the film a great deal. It will also help me when choosing what genre to choose. By looking at the most popular genres they seem to have around three or four different ones. This will help create a larger audience.
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