Genre

Conventions
BY CHARLOTTE WESTALL

SCI-FI

Narrative is anti-government

High tech machinery unknown to audience

Uses quick cuts at moments of intensity

Shows belief of future world will look like

Shows the end of the world

Protagonist is often portrayed as the last person standing on the planet

Flashbacks are often used to build up to a climax

Pacing is linked to amount of action in narrative

Low- key lighting

Often set in remote, isolated locations

Examples:

The Matrix- as the fight of the future begins when a hacker learns of another reality is real

War of the Worlds- upset state world leaving the protagonist to become the last person standing

A Space Odyssey- sets out on quests and enlist help from a computer system

ROMANTIC COMEDY

Boy meets Girl scenario

Two protagonist- male and female

Set in urban environment- workplace, where a chance encounter can happen

Often sexual innuendo is involved

Inevitability of two ending up in a relationship + happy ending

Normally starts with a voice over explaining characters

Third person/ villain is in way of love

Aimed at a female audience

Examples:

Breakfast at Tiffanys

10 Things I Hate About You

Love Actually

PERIOD DRAMA

Based on a historic figure

Works of fiction

Some are adaptations of classic novels

Range from any date in history

Relies heavily on mise-en-scene

Appropriate locations to time it is set in

Plot line usually centre on love, family, relationships

Examples:

Downton Abbey- set in a historical period in time

Pride and Prejudice

Jane Eyre- from a classic novel

NON-LINEAR NARRATIVE

When the order of events is rearranged or deconstructed and

doesnt follow a direct chronological order. Includes parallel plot
lines, flashbacks, dream sequences and used for recalling an
memory of a specific character in the film.

Examples:

Pans Labyrinth- the film starts from the ending and unravels of
how it happened

Atonement- switches from the past and present time period

through out the film as the narrative is told from the main
charater

LINEAR NARRATIVE

Linear narrative follows a straight line and the chronology of

events that happen to a certain character. Also it follows a time
line like a beginning, middle and an end

Examples:

The Dark Knight- set order of events and action in order to save
the world

Dark is Rising- the protagonist sets out on a quest to find objects

and defeat the dark

FLASHBACK

Flashback is a specific scene in a film or TV programme which will

be set in a earlier time period than the time period that the film
is set in.

Examples:

How I Met Your Mother- there are lots of flashbacks of how the
main protagonist got together with their love interest

Lost- When all of the character get out of the island there are
flashbacks of what happened on the island when they talk or
think about it

REALIST

Realist narrative is when a scene is set in a real life situation

which the audience can relate to. Having a realist narrative
makes the plot to be more believable and can be based on a true
story that happened in the past.

Examples:

12 Years a Slave- based on the slave trade in the 1842

Schindlers List- based on Oskar Schindler who created a list in

order to save the Jews in the World War

NON-REALIST

Non-realist narrative are storylines that arent believable and is

based on a fictional world. Also created by CGI and green screen,
therefore this allows the audience to experience another type of
atmosphere or world when watching the film.

Examples:

Jupiter Ascending- the film is set on Jupiter

The Host- the narrative consists of aliens taking over the world as
hosts of the human body and there are few human survivers

OPEN ENDING

An open ending narrative is an ending that leaves matters to be

unresolved and create a cliff hanger ending, which leaves the
audience to guess the ending or imagine their own ending. Open
ending narratives can leave the audience interested if there is a
sequel as the ending is left on a cliff hanger.

Examples:

Italian Job- the last scene is on a bus which is hanging on a cliff

The Thing- ends with MacReady simply suggesting why dont we

just wait here for a little while, see what happens

CLOSE ENDING

A closed ending narrative consists of the film ending with one or

more key issues being solved and wrapped up.

Examples:

Some Like it Hot- a man dressed as a women reveals true identity

Die Hard- hero defeats the villain and gets their love interest at
the end of the film