The genre may be considered as a practical device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication. – Denis McQuail 1987
. . saddled with conventions and stereotypes, formulas and clichés and all of these limitations were codified in specific genres. This was the very foundation of the studio system and audiences love genre pictures . . .Scorcese, A personal Journey through American Cinema (1995)
A key theoretical area that underpins Media Language is the study of GENRE. Genre is a way of thinking about media production (INSTITUTIONS) and media reception (AUDIENCES). Overall, genre study helps students to think about how media texts are classified, organised and understood, essentially around SIMILARITIES and DIFFERENCE. In that media texts hold similar patterns, codes and conventions that are both PREDICTABLE and EXPECTED, but are also INNOVATIVE and UNEXPECTED.
The genre may be considered as a practical device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication.Dennis McQuail 1987, p. 200
In some ways it hold conventions of other genres, as such it could be considered as a SUB-GENRE film (a genre within a genre) or a HYBRID GENRE (a combination of two genres). However, overall, it could be said that “genre is a system of codes, conventions and visual styles which enables an audience to determine rapidly and with some complexity the kind of narrative they are viewing” (Turner p.97 Film as Social Practice)
. . . saddled with conventions and stereotypes, formulas and clichés and all of these limitations were codified in specific genres. This was the very foundation of the studio system and audiences love genre pictures . . .Scorcese, A personal Journey through American Cinema (1995)#######}
The genre may be considered as a practical device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication.
Dennis McQuail 1987, p. 200
. . . saddled with conventions and stereotypes, formulas and clichés and all of these limitations were codified in specific genres. This was the very foundation of the studio system and audiences love genre pictures . . .
Scorcese, A personal Journey through American Cinema (1995)
Each director has their own different style, and this is a genre in it’s own right.
Steve Neale
Neale believes that films of a type (genre, like romance or horror) should include features that are similar, so the audience know it is a horror film or romance, but also include features that are different, to keep an audience interested. This is his theory of repetition and difference.
predictable expectations
expectations that others have too that are set before and also throughout reading a book, watching a film or listening to a song.
reinforced
strengthen (an existing feeling, idea, or habit).
amplify
enlarge upon or add detail to (a story or statement).
repertoire of elements
the repetition of components that make up the ‘body’ of similar texts – corpus.
corpus
body of similar texts.
verisimilitude
the appearance of being true or real.
realism
the quality or fact of representing a person or thing in a way that is accurate and true to life.
construction of reality
historically specific
in accordance with or with respect to history an historically accurate account
The genre may be considered as a ‘practical device’ for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers.
Genre is a way of thinking about media production (INSTITUTIONS) and media reception (AUDIENCES). Overall genre study helps students to think about how media texts are classified, organised and understood.
Consumers want their media to be PREDICTABLE and EXPECTED but they also want it to be INNOVATIVE and UNEXPECTED.
saddled with conventions and stereotypes, formulas and clichés and all of these limitations were codified in specific genres. This was the very foundation of the studio system and audiences love genre pictures
The genre is considered as a practical device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. It can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication.
Overall genre helps students to think about how media texts are classified, organised and understood around similarities and differences. In that media texts hold similar patterns, codes and conventions that are both predictable and expected, but are also innovative and unexpected.
“saddled with conventions and stereotypes, formulas and clichés and all of these limitations were codified in specific genres. This was the very foundation of the studio system and audiences love genre pictures“ They stick to making their own films in a vertical integration.
Verisimilitude = The appearance of being true or real. Repertoire = a list or supply of dramas, operas, pieces, or parts that a company or person is prepared to perform. Dubious = uncertain about the result.
Genre is a way of organizing products into different categories. It helps mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. It helps to understand similarities and differences in a piece of product. Products in the same genre tend to hold similar patterns and codes and conventions that are both predictable and expected. Consumers want it so that it is similar, but different, but not different enough so they don’t like it but instead a window between them.
saddled with conventions and stereotypes, formulas and clichés and all of these limitations were codified in specific genres. This was the very foundation of the studio system and audiences love genre pictures – Scorsese, A personal Journey through American Cinema (1995)
Steve Neal
predictable expectations – reinforced – amplify – repertoire of elements – corpus – verisimilitude – realism – construction of reality – historically specific – sub-genres – hybrid genres –
The genre may be considered as a practical device for helping any mass medium to produce consistently and efficiently and to relate its production to the expectations of its customers. Since it is also a practical device for enabling individual media users to plan their choices, it can be considered as a mechanism for ordering the relations between the two main parties to mass communication.
Dennis McQuail 1987, p. 200
Introduction
A key theoretical area that underpins Media Language is the study of GENRE. Genre is a way of thinking about media production (INSTITUTIONS) and media reception (AUDIENCES). Overall, genre study helps students to think about how media texts are classified, organised and understood, essentially around SIMILARITIES and DIFFERENCE. In that media texts hold similar patterns, codes and conventions that are both PREDICTABLE and EXPECTED, but are also INNOVATIVE and UNEXPECTED. The ideas of codes and conventions are the starting point to think about MEDIA LANGUAGE and has been discussed in earlier posts, remember each MEDIA FORM has its’ own language.
Please note that although genre is often considered in terms of the Film Industry (as it is here) it is a concept that could be applied to all other media forms – music, radio, TV, newspapers & magazines, on-line/social media etc
Task 1: make some general notes on genre
Genre as ‘Textual Analysis’
Ed Buscombe notes that the ‘kind’ or ‘type’ of film is usually recognised “and largely determined by the nature of its conventions” (1986 p. 15). In other words, the textual nature of the media production. To understand the way in which textual analysis is used to define the genre of a media product, look at any extract from any film.
In the extract provided on this blog post, from the Ballad of Buster Scruggs, you could ask students what they expect just from the title of the film and then by looking at just the first frame of this clip, discuss expectations. Get students to predict particular elements around: characters, setting, lighting, dialogue, music, sounds, mise-en-scene etc. From this excercise you should be able to elicit key characteristics (codes and conventions) that identify this as a Western.
Watch the extract and then talk about how students respond – identity any surprises – differences in expectations. It should show that although this clip follows generic expectations, it also shows how expectations can be altered, adapted, challenged, changed.
In this way it might be possible to understand the notion of CREATIVITY. The way in which new ideas (creativity) emerge from the predictable and expected. It is also possible to identify this clip as something more nuanced than simply a Western.
In some ways it hold conventions of other genres, as such it could be considered as a SUB-GENRE film (a genre within a genre) or a HYBRID GENRE (a combination of two genres). However, overall, it could be said that “genre is a system of codes, conventions and visual styles which enables an audience to determine rapidly and with some complexity the kind of narrative they are viewing” (Turner p.97 Film as Social Practice)
Task 2: go back to your statement of intent and indicate the genre and generic conventions of your film idea
Binary Oppositions is two opposite ‘things’ that are presented in such a way that you compare them with each other. An example of this is in Blinded by the Light by the representation of Pakistan versus English and a further example is in Bombshell by women versus men.
Binary means 2 different things completely that can be used for comparison. This theory suggests that narratives (=myths) are structured around binary options eg: good v evil; human v alien; young v old, poor and rich As such, it encourages students to understand narrative as a structure of key (oppositional) themes that underpin action and dialogue to develop a set of messages that the audience are able to decode and understand. Lévi-Strauss was a French anthropologist and ethnologist whose work was key in the development of the theories of structuralism and structural anthropology .This theory suggests that NARRATIVES (=myths) are STRUCTURED around BINARY OPPOSITIONS eg: good v evil; human v alien; young v old etc etc. As such, it encourages students to understand narrative as a structure of key (oppositional) themes that underpin action and dialogue to develop a set of messages that the audience are able to decode and understand.
myths according to Levi Strauss, articulate a version of the world around us, generating culturally specific cues that define acceptable or unacceptable social norms.
