Unit name | Film Genre |
---|---|
Unit code | FATV20002 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | I/5 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
Unit director | Ms. Katie Mack |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of Film and Television |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
This unit will acquaint students with key issues in the study of film genres in Hollywood and other national cinemas. Students will examine both the conventions of individual genres and the idea of genre itself. These aims will be pursued through the detailed analysis of genre movies and their surrounding contexts. The unit will explore formal, historical, ideological and industrial perspectives on genre, and consider some of the ways in which genre has been conceptualised. Students will also consider alternative approaches that potentially complicate the premises and assumptions of genre theory.
Aims:
On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to:
(1) identify and respond to issues raised in the study of film genre.
(2) critically assess the role genre plays in creating meaning in individual movies.
(3) compare and evaluate different ways of defining genres and genre films.
(4) situate film genres, and changes within them, historically.
(5) evaluate the claims made by genre theory and criticism, in relation to the appropriate evidence.
(6) produce work within a group, showing abilities to listen, contribute and lead effectively.
Weekly 2-hour seminar, weekly 3-hour screening with 15-minute introduction
20-minute group presentation (40%) ILO 1-6
3000 word essay (60%) ILO 1-5
Altman, R. (1999), Film / Genre, London: BFI
Dowd, G., Stevenson, L., and Young, J. (eds., 2006), Genre Matters: Essays in theory and criticism, Bristol: Intellect
Geraghty, L. and Jancovich, M. (eds., 2008), The Shifting Definitions of Genre: Essays on labelling films, television shows and media, London: McFarland
Grant, B.K. (ed., 2003), Film Genre Reader III, Austin: University of Texas Press
Neale, S. (2000), Genre and Hollywood, London: Routledge
Thomas, D. (2000), Beyond Genre: Melodrama, comedy and romance in Hollywood films, Moffat: Cameron and Hollis