* LO3 : Genre

Media companies like to use the same genres as it helps the company create profit as the audience knows what to expect.

Key Theory - Barry Keith Grant (1995)
All genres have subgenres which is a genre within a genre. 

Key Theory - Rick Altman (1999) 
Genre offers pleasure

• Emotional Pleasures- happy, sad, nostalgic 
• Visceral Pleasure- "gut" responses (physical feelings), excitement, fear, laughter 
• Intellectual Puzzles- Makes the audience think and want to solve the enigma 

Key theory - Patrick Phillips 
 Genre offeres audiences comfortable reassurance. Genres fulfil audience expectations by following predictable patterns - we know what to expect from a text. 

Key theory - Branston and Stafford (1999)
Genres:

• Help to minimise risk and predict expenditure
• Are a blueprint to success
• Genre conventions also make it easier to market and sell products

Key Theory- David Bordwell (1989) 

Any theme may appear in any genre

• Theme - the ideas, ideaologies, concepts, "myths" that are encoded into a media text. 

The Girl on the Train
The film is in the genre of thriller. The subgenre of this is psychological thriller. This can be seen through the use of:

Girl on the train has themes of:

• Motherhood
• Mental illness- alcoholism
• Betrayal

The purpose of camerawork:

• Involve the audiencee in the scene/narrative
• Create spectacle (excitement)

Camera work is divided into:

• Shot types 
• Camera movement 
• Camera angles 

Medium long shot- Show the character and
their key props

Wide shot/ long shot (WS/LS)- see characters on their key locations

Extreme long shot- used to show a character in a location
before an enigma.

Medium close up- Draws attention to key character.
Uses a narrow depth of field

Extreme close-up - Gives the audience key information about
the narrative or story and helps them solve an enigma.
Also used to show fear

Two Shot- shows the relationship between two characters

Crowd Shot- To show the relationships between
different characters

Close Up (CU) - The connotations of this
shot type are to show emotions of
 the main characters feeling

Enabling Shot- 

Connotations of a low angle shot- 

• Strength 
• dominance 
• power

The audience will see the protagonist when this angle of shot is used as this is the good character or the main character

Connotations of a high angle shot- 

• subordinate
• vulnerable 

The audience will see the antagonist as this is a character who could be seen as a "damsel in distress".



Dutch or Canted angle

• Unease
• Disorientation
• Add to the spectacle and action

Camera movement is one of the most important ways for a director to create spectacle for an audience 

Tracking shot 

paling movement- camera movement from left to right or visa versa. Also used to create a sense of movement or action too. 

Tilt shot

This is where the camera moves or sweeps up or down. This is used to exaggerate movement/action and create spectacle. 

Tracking shot

This is where the camera follows the subject on a dolly or track. This is to exaggerate movement/action and create spectacle (running/car race).