Genre research

What is a genre?

The definition for genre is described as a style or category of art,

music, literature.

When it comes to films, there are many different types of genres

that they can be categorised in to, some of these include:

Comedy

Action

Thriller

Horror

Romance

Drama

A film may also have a genre hybrid or sub genre. A genre hybrid is
when a film has two or more genres blended together so it is a cross
genre. On the other hand, a sub genre is when a film has a genre
which is less important than its main genre, it is just a subdivision.

Thriller is a broad genre of literature, film and television, having

numerous subgenres. Thrillers are characterized and defined by
the moods they produce, giving viewers heightened feelings
of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation and anxiety.
Successful examples of thrillers are the films of Alfred Hitchcock.

Thrillers generally keep the audience on the "edge of their seats" as

the plot builds towards a climax. The cover-up of important
information from the viewer is a common element. Literary
devices such as red herrings, plot twists, and cliff-hangers are used
extensively. A thriller is usually a villain-driven plot, whereby he or
she presents obstacles that the protagonist must overcome.
In 2001, the American Film Institute in Los Angeles made its
definitive selection of the top 100 greatest American "heart-
pounding" and "adrenaline-inducing" films of all time. AFI also asked
jurors to consider "the total adrenaline-inducing impact of a film's
artistry and craft".

Suspense is a crucial characteristic of the thriller genre. It gives the

viewer a feeling of pleasurable fascination and excitement mixed
with apprehension, anticipation and tension. These develop from
unpredictable, mysterious and rousing events during the narrative,
which make the viewer or reader, think about the outcome of
certain actions. Suspense builds in order to make those final
moments, no matter how short, the most memorable. The suspense
in a story keeps the person hooked to reading or watching more
until the climax is reached.

Codes and conventions of a thriller:

- Low key lighting

- Dark costumes
- Warehouse location
- Suspenseful non diegetic music
- Shadows
- Various angled shots e.g. dutch tilt
- Close up/extreme close ups

Influences

My thriller genre is mainly inspired by the Film Kidulthood, produced

by Cipher Films. This British drama follows a day in the lives of four
poor youths living in an impoverished neighbourhood in West
London, where the pressure and desperation of poverty propels
each of them towards the choice between a life of bleakness,
violence, and crime, and the terrifying prospect of striving for a
better life.
My sequence follows a similar theme in terms of gangs and drugs as
my main protagonist gets caught up in something not cut out for
him, which leaves the audience in confusion due to the enigma
within the film. This is the main mystery element of the thriller
genre. As the storyline takes a change in direction when the police
gets involved which puts the protagonist in a sticky situation.
Examples of thriller films:

- Inception
- Taken
- The Dark Knight
- Bullet Boy
- Attack the block