Genre Theory

Plot and Genre

If I was asked to describe my plot in one sentance it would be:

A virus survivor scavenges for supplies and reminisces back to and past life moments.

However in the media there are 7 basic plots they are as follows:

7 Basic Plots.

1. Overcoming of the monster
2. Rags to riches
3. The quest
4. Voyage and return
5. Comedy
6. Tragedy
7. Rebirth

The plot's in bold are the one's that I feel my concept can tie in with. As the trailer flows and in the movie itself if it were made, I would foresee the plot following these paths to reach the end of the product.

These come from a book called, The Seven Basic Plots: Why We Tell Stories. This is a 2004 book by Christopher Booker, a Jungian-influenced analysis of stories and their psychological meaning. Booker worked on the book for 34 years. Carl Jung was a Psychiatrist and was the founder of analytical psychology which focuses on the importance of the individual psyche and the personal quest for wholeness which can be related back to the idea of plot and narrative. Jung's school of thought helped to found Family Systems Theory, a psychological theory that I have used as an ideologies that will be interpreted into my trailer.

There are also several genre theories that producers, screenwriters and directors can follow when making their product these are:

• Descriptive,

A descriptive view/approach relies heavily on paradigms. This is as when we see something such as a film we slot it into a paradigm, by looking at things like structure, theme or visual style. Categories also include: character archetypes, costume, setting, shot transitions and also plot

• Functional,

A functional view/approach focus’ on patterns. The repetition of patterns are the repetition on social questions. The functional model reaches audience and meets their concerns, the questions are: What’s frightening, What is criminal/what are the boundaries of social morality