Genre analysis of "The Original"

Whilst writing the screen play for "The Original," Our group was certain aimed to make a film opening that fell under the category of science fiction. We attempted to follow as many of the codes and conventions as possible as to make this very clear, we set in in a rural, possibly abandoned area ad made use of many of the character conventions such as the anti-establishment male in the form of the protagonist, the intellectual informer as the farmer and the innocent victim being the clone. We also followed a typical storyline of characters reacting to the actions of an oppressive government. As well as this we we ensured that our intention of creating a science fiction film was immediately recognisable, In the opening scene of our film opening we show a news reporter delivering the news that cloning is illegal, Immediately this establishes the storyline of the film opening but as well as this, in the corner of the screen there is a logo, intended to be seen as the news channels logo. This also contributes to the science fiction nature of the short film as it immediately seems very dystopian.                     

However genre theory goes well beyond these factors and many scholars have contributed to the argument as to what genre is exactly and what qualifies films to fall into each genre.Genre is a way of categorising text through style and form, A text is classified in a genre through the identification of key elements which occur in that text and in others of the same genre. People such as Tom Ryalle have spoken out about genre and he states that genre provides framework and structuring in the shape of patterns which act as a form of supervision over the production of a film. This makes it significantly easier for both the viewers and those in charge of marketing the films. It makes choosing films to watch easier as audiences are able to quickly determine what they do and do not like, in terms of marketing it allows the advertisers to accentuate the most recognisable science fiction features in order to attract the audience with ease. John Fiske also agrees with this stance stating that genre,"Attempts to structure some order into the wide angle of texts and meaning that circulate in our culture for the convenience of both producers and audiences." Steve Neale however takes a slightly different stance on the matter of genre and sees genre as a tool which can guarantee meaning and pleasure for audiences and offsets the considerable economic risks of industrial film production by providing cognitive collateral again innovation and difference.