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I am going to research into film genre and I am going to use a theoretical approach. Our chosen film genre is either British Crime or Dystopia and focusing on postmodern and genre theory.

ResearchResearch

BriefBrief

•To produce a promotion packager for a new film, to include a teaser trailer, together with 2 of the following:•A website homepage for the film•A film magazine front covering, featuring the film.•A poster for the film.

Genre Theory Genre Theory

Genre is an important device in the film and media industry. It allows media products to fit into categories according to similarities of stereotypes they share. For example, comedy, crime, sci-fi, action are all different types of genres. Hybrid-genres are a mix between different genres and are being more frequently, a lot of post modern films have hybrid-genres. Usually in film trailers you can determine what genre it is but the 1:30 minute you see of the film but directors like Quentin Tarantino create a trailer where you can’t really determine one specific genre therefore making the audience more intrigued to see that film.

British Crime

Crime films comes from Gangster films in the 1920s. When a crime film is made it reflects society's fears in that era. Some crime film follow Todorov’s narrative structure or can happen after the disruption of the equilibrium for example after the main characters have actually done the heist and now you see what happens after. In typical crime films it usually involves a rival killing, gangs, a heist.

Dystopia

Dystopian world is an imagined place or state in which everything is unpleasant. It is the opposite of Dystopia. A lot of dystopian films contain postmodern themes through the challenging narrative themes. The narrative doesn’t usually follow the Todorov narrative structure. It starts after the disruption of the equilibrium which is usually a national or global disaster for example war, plague, alien invasion. A lot of dystopian films relate to real fears in society like environmental changes, medical experiments going wrong, cold war .

DystopiaDystopiaCharacter TypesThe protagonist is usually a male but recently dystopian films have been using more post modern techniques where a female is the protagonist, The Hunger Games being an example. A human survivor group who are struggling to survive after a natural disaster or post apocalyptic world, usually only one survives, films like 28 days later and clover field are examples of this. There is usually a helper sometimes it can be the best friend of the protagonist or another survivor whom they met or the helper can be from the alien or infected race who helps the hero reach the new equilibrium.

Sub-genreA lot of dystopian films have the sub-genre of science fiction, were a totalitarian government control everyone and watch what everyone does the idea of ‘big brother’. This relates to fears in society, especially post war, the film ‘Nineteen-eighty Four’ is a really good example of this. Zombie films usually come under the sub-genre of horror where a medical experiment has gone wrong and spread nation wide. This is usually where a group of survivors try and fight off the zombies and survive until help comes.

Dystopian film timelineDystopian film timeline

Pre-war (1920s) – The fears in that era were Mass production, totalitarian and big brother type situations. For example Metropolis (1927), a city which is sharply divided between the working class and working planners.

Post war: The fears of society changed, they feared nuclear war, invasion and post apocalyptic ideas.

70/80s: Again the fears of society changed, they feared now medical advancement and computer and robot power. A good example for this is 1984’s The Terminator.

90s and now: There are some similar fears in society that were in 70/80s era but there are more environmental fears as well as cloning and genetics. For example Total Recall (2012). Now days there are a lot of horror zombie films such as 28 days later (2002).

ExamplesHere are two old classic dystopian films with two modern dystopian films. ‘1984’ was originally a book written by George Orwell is about the ‘big brother’ type genre, it was made in 1984 and it was directed by Michael Radford and John Hurt starred as the main protagonist. The Blade Runner made in 1982 is a sci-fi post apocalyptic film where the protagonist has to track down four criminals who highjack a ship in space and bring them back to Earth. 2012 is a post-apocalyptic film where the end of the world is coming and a family are trying to find a way to survive. The Hunger Games is about 24 children every year get picked to compete and only one can survive. This film uses post modern elements like having a female protagonist.

Postmodern Film conventions

Postmodern film

Postmodern films attempt to change the mainstream conventions of narrative structure and characterisation. They often use portrayals such as gender, race, class, genre and time with the ambition to

make something not so typical from traditional narrative.

Postmodern film conventions

•Anti-Narratives – Disruption of the narratives E.g. Freeze frame in Sherlock Holmes.•Bricolage - Almost stealing images/objects from different styles, to create new meanings E.g. The yellow jumpsuit in Kill Bill.•Pastiche – A straight copy of another text E.g. Oceans 11 and Sherlock Holmes

Media Aesthetic Styles

•High art Styles – film techniques that challenge conventional ideas.•Simulacra or hyper reality - where the audience is aware of an artificial rather than a ‘real’ mise en scene. Allows challenging themes and representations to be explored.•Meta-reference – when the audience is made aware they are watching a ‘film. I.e. talking to the camera.

Quentin TarantinoQuentin Tarantino

Reservoir dogs (1992)

Tarantino based a lot of the plot from the 1960’s film Oceans 11. He also uses a similar storyline but modernises it.

Jackie Brown (1997)

Jackie Brown is a Blaxploitation film based on the 1970’s film Foxy Brown, the lead in that was also the lead in Jackie Brown.

Kill Bill Vol 1 (2003)

Kill Bill has some aspects from the film Game Of Death (1979). Uma Thurman who is the main character in the film plays a female assassin, which you do not usually see in films. She wears a similar outfit to what Bruce Lee wore in one of his films. It’s a tribute to Hong Kong action films and spaghetti westerns. In some points of Kill Bill Tarantino adds Manga/Anime, to tell a story.

Inglorious Basterds (2009)

Tarantino got the idea of Inglorious Basterds from the 1960’s war film ‘The Dirty Dozen’, although he bases this film on American Jewish soldiers getting their revenge on the Nazi’s.

Tarantino uses a similar style of poster like the one used in Oceans 11.

British Crime

Conventions

Heist, car chases, robberies Mafia (crime organisation) - UnderworldAnti-hero (criminal) – modern films they are looked at as the hero rather than the detectiveDetective and police (who we should be rooting for – classic crime films they would be the normal hero)Violence -Threat of violence Drugs – Narrative element Murder Materialistic – want the characters to look the part to make it believable Location – crowded cities, dark nightclubs, alley waysPOV of whoever you want to empathise withFully British – set in UK, British characters, set in pubsFemme fatale – Strong women, love interest

British Crime Timeline British Crime Timeline 1940s/50s: A lot of crime films reflected post war anxieties which is British Noir. British crime films also follow film noir conventions showing the darker side of civilian life. Examples: Brighton Rock (1947)

1960s – British crime films changed drastically in the 60s the main characters had the typical cockney accent and they were usually the criminal that you rooted for instead of hating which is called ‘anti-hero’. A lot of the films as mixed in crime with comedy. Examples: The Italian Job (1969)

1970s/80s: Taken a more darker gritty turn from the 60s because of the down fall in the late 60’s early 70s. British crime showed more gang themes and more violence. Examples: Get Carter (1981).

1990s: British Crime took a more postmodern approach to its gangster films, reflecting the new laddish era. Directors such as guy Ritche made Lock, Stock and two smoking barrels (1998) and Snatch (2000) having got inspiration from Quieten Tarantino. Examples: London To Brighton (2006)

American Crime Films

• Noir: The third man (1940)• On The Waterfront (1957)• Bonnie and Clyde (1967)• The Godfather (1971)• Reservoir Dogs (1992)

• Natural Born Killers (1994)• No Country For Old Men

Trailer AnalysisTrailer Analysis

Dystopia Dystopia

Oblivion – Directed by Joseph Kosinski (2013)

Characters: A male protagonist (Tom Cruise), a female helper, a group of survivors who are at first portrayed at the enemy but are not (Morgan Freeman).Genre: The clear genre is action because there is a lot of guns and explosions in the trailer as well as fighting. There is a sub-genre of mystery, when there is a female character who knows the lead but he doesn’t know who she is, and how those survivors survived the world wide attack, which would bring in a wider audience. Narrative: Part 1 the equilibrium is the protagonist and the helper repairing any broken drones which are getting supplies for the other humans who are on a ship in space. Part 2 the disruption is him being taken captive by what it seems is a group of survivors, he is told they are on his side. You see the disruption of the equilibrium in the trailer because more action starts taking place. You see hints of what might actually be happening and if it is resolved.

Voice-over/Narration: The main character of the film (Tom Cruise) is doing the voice-over on the trailer. Explaining what’s happened and what he is doing on Earth. He uses a dramatic tone to entice audiences. Sound: The non-diegetic music is very dramatic, especially when the disruption of the equilibrium happens and as the trailer goes on the music gets more and more intense. Titles/onscreen text: The titles come half way through the trailer, with sliver lettering it says ‘From the producers of Planet Of The Apes’ a recognisable film with good reviews which might make people go and see this film. It also says Tom Cruise is starring who is a massive star alongside Morgan Freeman who is also famous which get people interested also. Camerawork: There is a lot of wide shots and aerial shots in the trailer, to give the audience a feel of what the Earth looks like in this film. As the trailer goes on and gets more dramatic there are a lot of close ups on characters to shown their emotions more.Editing: At first as a transition it blacks out after each shot to get to another scene and then it turns fast pace to go in time with the music to make it more intense. There is also a scene when the protagonist falls and its edited to go in slow motion.

Equilibrium

Genre: Equilibrium comes under three different types of genres; Action because of the fighting scenes and the use of guns, Drama because of the totalitarian government and the protagonist finding out that he isn’t who he think he is and sci-fi because there is new technology. Narrative: At the start of the trailer you see the main character (Christian Bale) looking like the leader of a totalitarian government, everyone is wearing the same outfits and the city looks very industrial, no one in the city has any freedom, you then see the main character have a flashback of his wife being taken and that he has children, you then get a snippet of his old life and why he is what he is now. This shows that really the film starts in the disequilibrium. You then see the main character try and over throw the system that the state has. The trailer does not really show if a new equilibrium is made which makes viewers want to see the film.Voice-over/narration: In some parts of the trailer they use dialogue from the characters to explain what is happening in the film but apart from that there is no narration or voice-over.

Sound: Right from the start of the trailer the non-diegetic music is very dramatic and as the trailer goes on and you start knowing more about the main character the music gets more and more intense. The music puts the audience on edge and makes the film seem dramatic and interesting to see. Title/Onscreen text: Instead of a narrator the onscreen text explains what is going on and describes the main character, whenever the text comes up it is in white bold capital letters on a black background and it uses powerful words like ‘betrayed’ and ‘ultimate enforcer’. Cast: Well known actor Christian Bale is the main character and Chicago star Taye Diggs star in the film.Camera work/editing: There is a lot of wide shots used to show the audience the world the characters in this film are living in. As the trailer gets more dramatic there are more close ups on characters faces to shows how they’re feeling and to make it more intense. Towards the end of the trailer there is a lot of action going on using quick fast paced editing. At the end they use time remapping when he jumps and flips over a motor bike.

The Hunger Games

Genre: The Hunger Games comes under the genre of Adventure, sci-fi and thriller. With the protagonist going into a game where only one survives it’s going to be thrilling for the audiences to see who survives and what happens. Narrative: Part 1 :It starts off with the main protagonist shooting a bow and arrow at an animal with her friend and it’s explained that each year two young adults from each district will get chosen for the annual hunger games where only one person survives. Part 2: The protagonist’s little sister get’s picked and so to protect her volunteers herself in her sister’s place. You then see her and the boy picked from her district in training following to the games. You do not get to see any of part 3 of the narrative structure because it makes the audience wants to see if the protagonist survives. Voice-over/narration: There is no narration but they take character dialogue from the film to explain over clips of what is happening and why each year these games happen to let the audience kind of know what is happening and so they understand a little and want to go see it.

Sound: At the start of the trailer there is music but it’s quite quiet but it feels like it’s building up to something. When she volunteers herself in place on her sister the music stops to make that speech more dramatic. At the end of the trailer when you see the protagonist go into the games and is running in what looks like a forest the music gets very dramatic as this is the climax of the film and it makes it more intense and dramatic to watch. Title/Onscreen text: In this trailer there isn’t a lot of onscreen text, it says that its from an ‘epic bestselling novel’ which advertises the fact it’s the book and might make people viewing the trailer purchase the book before seeing the film. The sentence ‘the games will change everyone’ is put in but the sentence is split up with clips of the main characters to make the words real. The title is all in black with a gold outline and a logo of a bird with an arrow behind it.Camera work/editing: There are some wide shots used when they get into the city area to show how colourful and better it is to live in the city in this film than the small districts. A lot of close ups on characters are used to distinguish their emotions through out the trailer as the narrative progresses. When the protagonist volunteers as tribute there is a lot of fast paced editing building up to the moment and after to see who her fellow tribute will be. At the end of the trailer when the games begin the editing is faced paced to make it look action packed and dramatic.

Cloverfield

Genre: Cloverfield comes under the genre of Action because of the guns and them fighting whatever it is that is attacking the city, Sci-fi because there is some kind of alien invasion and Thriller because it’s a group of survivors trying to survive against what is attacking them throughout the whole movie and you want to see what exactly is attacking them. Narrative: At the start of the trailer you see what the equilibrium is and it’s a group of friend having a party, it then cuts to see an explosion happen in the city this is where you see the disequilibrium happen. The whole trailer is about a group of survivors trying to escape the city and the aliens attacking it. You see one of the characters talking into the camera and explains what has happened to them in case anyone finds the footage. You see the survivors in different scenarios being under attack but the aliens. The trailer does not show the new equilibrium to get audiences to go and see the film

Sound: There is not a lot of music in this trailer other than a low steady beat in the background, a lot of the trailer is just the characters talking I guess to make it seem more realistic and it makes the audience feel like they’re experiencing it with them. It also makes the explosions and gun shots in the trailer much louder and prominent. Title/Onscreen text: The title at the end flickers on it white bold text and on a black background and keeps flickering the whole time, maybe to show that the light in the city is going out.Director/Studio/Reviews: The only text that comes on throughout the trailer is that J.J. Abrams produced it who is a well known producer and has worked on the likes of Lost, Star Trek and Mission Impossible. All of which have a massive audience and would get those audiences to see this filmCamera work/editing: A unique selling point about this film is that it is all filmed hand held from a character in the film. It makes the shots more shakey and it also makes it feel a lot more real for the audiences. For example whenever they are running the camera shakes and the picture is distorted. The whole trailer is really fast paced edited to make it more dramatic and intense.