2. What is genre?
-Genre is a category of artistic composition, as in music or
literature, characterized by similarities in form, style, or subject
matter.
Although genres are not always precisely definable, genre considerations are
one of the most important factors in determining what a person will see or
read. The classification properties of genre can attract or repel potential
users depending on the individual's understanding of a genre.
The producers and institutions have to know what kind of film genre they're
going to produce right from the word go, so they know to get the right
actors, props, set, dialogue etc.
3. What genre theorists can you find?
Andrew Tudor – Argued that genre is only what we collectively believe it to be. He says that a genre
defines a moral and social world.
John Hartley – Argued that genres are agents of ideological closure; they limit the meaning
potential of a given text.
Robert Hodge & Gunther Kress – Argue that genres are typical forms of texts that link kinds of
producer, consumer, topic, medium, manner and occasion. Also, that they control the behaviour of
the producers of such texts and the expectations of potential customers.
Daniel Chandler – Conventional definitions of genres tend to be based on the notion that they
constitute particular conventions of content (such as themes or setting) and/or form (including
structure and style) which are shared by the text which are regarded as belonging to them.
Tom Ryall – Argues that genre provides a framework of structuring rules, in the shape of
patterns/forms/styles/structures, which act as a form of supervision over the work of production of
film makers and the work of reading by the audience.
Steve Neall – argues that Hollywood’s generic regime performs two inter-related functions. 1) to
guarantee meanings and pleasures to the viewer. 2) to offset the considerable economic risks of
industrial film production by providing cognitive collateral against innovation and difference.
4. What genre theories link to the
horror genre?
Tom Ryall’s theory is the most relatable to the chosen genre of horror. He
argues that each genre has a preordained framework that producers stick
to when creating the plot and the final product. I think this particularly
applies to horror genre as there are certain conventions that make up the
final piece, without the recognition of each convention, the unit of drama
cannot be considered a ‘horror’. For example, the antagonist is the killer.
The killer is always suspicious, and keeps themselves isolated until they are
ready to attack. This is typical ‘framework’ in which the producers need to
conform, to create a horror piece. In addition to this, the structure of the
film is usually similar within most horrors, for example the oblivious victim,
suddenly faced by the dangerous killer, if with friends- they are usually
murdered, and the main character is the only one left, good usually
prevails and kills the killer, however, in a lot of horror pieces the killer isn’t
really dead, and the film is left on a cliff-hanger.
