Media Studies: Genre Research (Drama)

In order to be able to fully portray both the Thriller and Drama aspects of our film, We have decided to conduct research into the Drama genre.

What is Drama in film?

"Drama film is a genre that relies on the emotional and relational development of realistic characters. While Drama film relies heavily on this kind of development, dramatic themes play a large role in the plot as well. Often, these dramatic themes are taken from intense, real life issues. Whether heroes or heroines are facing a conflict from the outside or a conflict within themselves, Drama film aims to tell an honest story of human struggles." 

This definition of the drama genre clearly indicates that our short film (Pot Luck) will have some aspects of this genre within it, for example, We are trying to focus our story based on the principles of power and money and how these factors can lead people astray from what is important.

Storylines

Drama has storylines that base around situations of the person, and how these can effect them such as family issues and personal conflicts, these conflicts included inner/outer realistic struggles depicting hardships, difficulty and pain. These storylines are essential for the success of films of this genre, this is because the audience can recognise the representations of your everyday person. Another common theme of storylines are power struggles, This theme in particular appeals to me as it strikes as a theme we are trying to represent in our own sequence.

History of Drama

Dramatic films include a very large spectrum of film genres, Included in this spectrum are Thriller films. Some of the greatest screen performances come from dramas, as there is ample opportunity for actors to stretch into a role that most other genres cannot afford. Drama films are extremely successful and are often nominated for numerous awards such as Academy awards.

After the progressing from Silent to films with sound, more directors needed to hire actors of a greater quality to act in film. In return this resulted in a more persuasive performance. The 1951 film "A street car named Desire" is considered to have a large role in the development of the drama genre. This film is seen as the one that sparked realism within Cinema and the focus on character development and relationships.

There seems to be a correlation between the Drama films released and what is on the political and public agenda at this time. During the 60's a lot of the drama films were then focused on the brutality of war, this was at a time when one of the main producers of films, The United States were at war within Vietnam. Some believed these films were released as a form of propaganda and to encourage people to join the army. 

Apocalypse Now (1979)

In the next thirty years the Drama genre exploded and released a variety of films, a lot of them drama sub genres featuring crime (Goodfellas), emotion (Do the right Thing), as well as topics such as coming of age (Stand By Me) and even science fiction films (ET).

Modern drama

There has been a moderate decline on the success of drama's in recent years, at least in terms of a Drama as an individual genre (No sub-genre). However the genre has adapted with the rise of popularity of celebrities and fame. This in turn created an increase biopic films (Biographical films) that were centred around drama and followed events based on true events. Films such as Ali, Walk The Line and 8 Mile are examples of successful biopic films from within the last 15 years. The most modern example of this would be American Sniper (2014), a biopic film that features action and thrilling elements, the combination of which is the most likely reason for its success. Other than few acceptions (Slumdog Millionaire, which is a romantic drama), Most Drama films today now have to provide the audience with some factors of action in order to keep them interested, which isn't necessarily a bad thing as it allows directors to "Pick and Mix" their favourite aspects of different genre and try to combine them with Drama in a way that works. Nowadays all films have aspects of Drama within them as it is now seen as a necessity for an audience to truly appreciate a production.

Slumdog Millionaire won 8 Acadamy awards

Drama in Short Films

In the world of Short Films, Drama's are extremely effective as they allow the director to portray their ideas by utilising character development and emotion focused plots. Another reason drama's are a popular choice for Short Film makers is because they can be made on an extremely tight budget, since they focus on realism, special effects and all out action isn't a necessity when trying to initiate good storytelling. An example of a dramatic short film would be "One By One", a short found I found on youtube directed by young amateur film maker Jonathan Hang, He was fourteen years old at the time this film was directed and it cost absolutely nothing. This shows that the Drama genre is a lifesaver in terms of budget yet it doesn't deteriorate the quality of the film.