Here are my notes from a theory lesson we did in class about Genre Theory and how we can use it to target audiences.
NOTE: Include any images of board work, and also you can copy your Unit Test 2 response at the bottom. But make sure you explain to the examiner the context!
Reflection: This was very helpful, it gave me a better understanding of how I can make changes to a genre to target new audiences. I think it will be specifically useful for my sports magazine, which my research has indicated are mostly targeted at males aged 16-40. I want to target a younger female audience in my work, so I will make differences, as Neale put it, to things like colour, typeface, featured celebrities that will attract this demographic.
One way to target an audience is through the use of genre. Steve Neale states that genre is simply a case of repetition and difference. He says that a media text in a genre must;
1. Conform enough to the conventions of a genre in order to be recognisable.
2. Subvert the conventions of a genre so as not to appear too repetitive, boring.
Doing so will provide pleasure and meaning for the audience as well as offsetting against financial risk. Genre is useful because;
- it provides an audience with expectations
- it provides a template for production (writers, directors, etc.)
- distributors know who their audience is and how to target them.
- This gives the audience variety to enjoy.
- It diversifies the financial risk for the production company.
Case Study
The Batman, 2022
The Lego Batman Movie, 2017
One way that media can target different audiences is through genre in what Steve Neale would call similarities and differences. WarnerBros. own the rights to the character of Batman thanks to their 1969 acquisition of DC Comics. Since then they have been churning out Batman content including 2017's The Lego Batman Movie and more recently The Batman in 2022. Both movies contain similar characters and features from the comic, however both movies have been targeted toward very different audiences. The genre of the two is superhero movie, knowing this the audience can expect to see costumes, secret identities, futuristic gadgets, big action set pieces and a battle between good and evil. These are conventions of the genre, but as Neale states in his genre theory , the texts must also subvert the typical conventions to remain new and interesting. The Lego Batman Movie is clearly targeted towards children, this is clear from the synergetic partnership with Lego, a toy company popular amongst youngsters. The animated movie takes on a more family friendly tone, with lots of comedy and 'friendship' being the main theme. The Batman, on the other hand, is targeted toward a much older audience. This is evident from the darker themes, the R rating and the violence depicted on screen. WarnerBros has subverted the genre enough to be appealing to these different audiences, even crossing over into the animated genre and the noir detective genre respectively.
A look at The Riddler, a villain featured in both movies
Comments
Post a Comment