The document discusses the history and definition of film genres, particularly the thriller genre. It notes that genres first emerged in the late 19th century with early films featuring swashbuckling adventure or romance narratives. The 1920s-1930s saw the rise of the thriller genre due to films by Alfred Hitchcock. Key characteristics that define genres include narrative conventions, character representations, and construction techniques like camerawork and music. Sub-genres are hybrids that combine elements of multiple main genres, like psychological thrillers.

1. Adam Barnard
Research Task 1

2. What is Genre?
• Genre is the name given to a film
with a certain narrative or a film that
has distinctive characteristics.
There are many types of genres
from comedy to action or thriller to
film noir. An extension to genres are
sub-genres, these are a mixture of
two genres. An example of this
would be an 'Action Thriller', this is
where the fast paced action of an
action film would be mixed with the
tension of a thriller. An example of
this would be the 2008 film Taken.
Taken 2008

3. History of Genre
1896
This is the year that
the first production
camera was
invented and also
the first film was
invented. In this
period genres were
quickly developed
but it took until the
1920's for the
invention of Thriller
films to come
about.
192030's
In this decade on
of the most
influential film
makers Alfred
Hitchcock made
his first film and
really kick started
the thriller genre.
His first film was
called "The
Lodger".
1940's
This decade saw
Hitchcock still
doing suspense
based thriller films.
In the forties he
won two oscars for
his films 'Foreign
Correspondent'
and 'Rebecca'.
This also saw the
introduction of
Psychological
Thrillers such as
George Cukor's
'Gaslight'.
1950's
1960's
1960 saw on of
Hitchcock's rein
Hitchcock's most
continued through famous films called
the 50's and added 'Psycho'. Also in
films like
the 60's saw many
'Technicolor' to his new directors
collection. There
dipping into the
were only a hand
thriller genre such
full of Thriller films
as J.Lee Thompson
released by other
with 'Cape Fear'
directors in the
and Michael
50's.
Powell's 'Peeping
Tom'.
197080's
1990Present
These decades
saw the first 'R'
rated film and this
was down to
another Hitchcock
film called 'Frenzy'
(1972). The 80's
gave us films like
'Dressed To Kill'
and the
assassination
thriller 'Blow Out'.
Today, Thrillers
and the sub-genres
attached to it are
some of the
biggest grossing
films around. Films
like 'Silence of the
Lambs' and
'Se7en' have many
many millions of
dollars.
• From 1880, when the first camera was invented, there has always been a genre to films.
During the 1920s and 1930s, action-based films were often "swashbuckling" adventure films in
which actors, such as Douglas Fairbanks, wielded swords in period pieces or Westerns. In
1896, the Vitascope Motion Picture Camera was released, and on its release date it was the
first ever film to show case two people kissing, thus making the first ever romantic film. I
personally believe that these genres are what all films are made from today and all other
genres are merely sub-genres...

4. Sub-Genres
• Sub-genres are mixtures or types of other,
more strict, film genres. An example of a subgenre would be a Psychological Thriller
because it mixes the two genres. These are
identifiable sub-classes of a larger category
of a main film genre, with their own distinctive
subject matter, style, formulas, and
iconography. Some of them are prominent
sub-genres, such as: biopics, 'chick' flicks,
detective/mystery films, disaster films, fantasy
films, film noir, 'guy' films, melodramas (or
'weepers'), road films, romances, superhero
films, sports films, supernatural films. Some
examples of Thriller sub-genres would be
films like 'Black Swan', 'Se7en' or 'Silence of
the Lambs'.

5. • Narrative conventions: Narrative conventions
include points of view, characterization, descriptive
language, conflict, climax, plot, time, form etc. Within
most films there will be a narrative that is seen to be
associated with that genre. For example an action
film will have a narrative with some form of disruption
to the equilibrium in which the hero will have to solve.
Then again, in sub-genres you can have a mix of
narratives of many different films.
• Character representation: In certain narratives
you can expect there to be certain characters that
are seen as the hero of the story. For example action
films, there will normally be a character that will save
the day via a lot of carnage and destruction or
sometimes an anti-hero that succeeds in doing an
illegal or immoral. In Thrillers you will get characters
that will have the equilibrium of their life disrupted by
something that they won't necessarily know about
until a twist at the climax of the film.

6. Construction
• Camerawork: Camerawork is obviously
everything to film. Back the late 1800's/early
1900's there was almost no such thing as
camerawork or technique; the camera would
simply just stand there. With the introduction of
more complex comedy or action films, directors
began to use the camera angles to make
scenes feel more dramatic etc. In films like
thrillers or suspense films the camera angles
will be very mysterious only revealing one
aspect of a character or object, for example a
characters eye etc.
• Music: When sound was introduced to cinema
the first thing that was put in was music. Music
is one of the most effect tools of expressing the
happenings in a scene. In a romantic film there
will often be a large orchestra playing quite
minimalist music to create a 'delicate'
atmosphere throughout a scene.
Establishing Shot
Close up
Mid Shot
Low Angle
Extre me Close Up

7. Bibliography
• http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art17436.asp
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_genre
• http://www.filmsite.org/subgenres.html
• http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_a_narrative_convention#page2
• http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2009/01/30/movies/30taken.xlarge
1.jpg
• http://www.slideshare.net/LamarAndreJohnson/history-of-thriller-films