Codes And Conventions

A theorist called Altman says that we can talk about film genre into two ways:
1. SEMANTIC: the way the films look
2. SYNTACTIC: the stories the films tell

The use of similar features in films of the same genre are called CODES AND CONVENTIONS. They helps us to quickly recognise the type of film we are watching, to have some expectations about what we could see and what might happen and we will often enjoy watching how the film might use or challenge the codes of the genre. The genre that we've decided as a group we are going to do our title sequence is:

The conventions in a horror film is that:

• Dark, gloomy atmosphere and mood creating a fearful and isolated feeling within the audience.
• Disturbing, low pitch sounds to create tension and suspense.
• Death/supernatural/dark plots and story lines
• Vulnerable character, brave heroic character and the villain.
• Contrapuntal music 

Within Codes and Conventions they're macro and micro elements which help us analyse the film