Aice media genre research

 How comedy makes us laugh

Comedy is a genre that has been in the top seen worldwide since movies started. Its main focus is to make people distract from their daily issues and disconnect, by the constant use of humor and often dumb situations. Another good thing to take into account is that most usually comedy viewing is continuos, meaning that it often stills have the same impact after many years, things that in genres like sci-fi does not happen.

Comedy is also great is creating a good moment for all ages and generations. Comedy movies are perfect for social viewing, reuniting friends and families together to share the experience. In addition, the genre is extremely versatile, as it can expand through many categories, for example, romantic or action comedies.

Content: 

Comedies are defined by the following characteristics:

1 Setting: Comedies often use familiar settings, like schools, campings, or amusement parks, allowing audiences to connect with everyday situations or moments they may have experienced before. Some use the setting as a supplement to exaggerate the humor developed in the story or situation.

2 Characters: Comedic characters typically are represented with peculiar traits and stereotypes, whether they are dumb, the ugly, the nerd, etc. 

Ex: Fogell (Mclovin) is represented with all the traits that would normally fit with a nerd and popular boy.

Plot Structure: Comedies often follow simple plots, focusing on the characters actions and reactions. Typical plots include misunderstandings, teenage love, or chaotic vacations, with endings that generally resolve conflicts with humor.

Production techniques

Timing: Comedy relies massively on timing, with rapid or more delayed responses, creating that desired funny effect. Editing often helps to highlight punchlines, while pacing varies depending the humor. 

Sound Effects and Music: Music and sound effects enhance the comedic effects. For example, slapstick comedies use exaggerated sounds for physical humor.

Lighting and Cinematography: Comedies typically use bright, natural lighting, contributing to a relaxed and natural atmosphere. Camera angles often focus on facial expressions and body language, which are really important to a lot of jokes intended in the movie. 

Ex: Incoming uses natural lightnings that match with the environment and situation to make us connect more with the story the kids are living. 

Marketing

Comedy films are marketed through trailers that highlight the funniest moments, often giving a teaser of the central conflict. Posters usually show the main characters in specific poses or expressions, that match with the tone of the film. Marketing often relies on catch frases or slogans, and social media promotions sometimes involve humorous shorts to engage the most amount of audience.

Ex: Dumb and dumber is shown with them doing stupid things as their name says, which, as explained before, es perfectly made to match the tone while going to watch the movie.

Samples: 

Grown ups is a perfect example of a friend comedy sub-genre, centering on a group of childhood friends reuniting in adulthood. The humor bases on exaggerated character actions, with each friend having a specific personality type that leads to hilarious situations. The film uses relatable settings like family vacation spots and familiar experiences to connect with the audience, while the characters actions  highlight the humorous side of adult friendships. Marketing for this movie emphasized on its cast of well-known actors, showing clips of the characters best experiences and anecdotes. 

Project X is a modern take on the teen comedy, centered around an epic house party that spirals out of control. The film’s humor relies on exaggerated party scenarios, showing how anything can happen. Presented in a found-footage style, it makes us feel embaded even more with the story. The film’s marketing leaned massively on the teenage fantasy of the massive party, using trailers and posters that showed the extreme party atmosphere desired. It is destined to young adult audiences and fans of chaotic humor.

Another comedies to consider:

American Pie (1999)

The Mask (1994)

Happy Gilmore (1996)

Step Brothers (2008)

The Hangover (2009)

Represenation

World War Z

World War Z illustrates a zombie apocalypse that spread in a matter of days into the whole world. The film develops through the character of Gerry Lane, a former UN investigator and played by Brad Pitt, who deals with survival and leadership along with the necessity of great sacrifices to save a world on its downfall. He i the conventional good hearted hero who is on a mission to protect his family while attempting to stop the virus and find the source. 

 

Another important representation is the world being together. There were seen various countries and their efforts in combating the"zekes". Unlike many other regular zombie apocalypse films that focus on a single country or specific place, World War Z happens across several countries, reinforcing the problem that humanity is facing. Each country offers a different response to the chaos, representing the different strategies and readiness some countries had over others. 

The representation of the zombies themselves is another key aspect of the film. Unlike the slow, almost defenseless zombies traditionally seen in horror films or shows, this movie introduces fast, aggressive, and unpredictable that are shown almost like an invincible.

Overall, World War Z uses characters like Gerry and global unity to explore the major themes of survival, global unity, and the fragility of human civilization. The film’s idea of making fast-moving zombies and its focus on worldwide collaboration help take the film further than just the typical zombie movie, giving a deeper view on how societies respond to crises. 

Sound Project

The class was teached about all the different techniques used in films to display sound, as the Foley techniques, which are the art of representing sounds in an independent room using specific objects, so the shown sound in the movies sound as desired. We also learned the types of sound, either if it is a soundtrack, diegetic sounds, or sound effects for example.  

Furthermore, The As media class have been assigned to, in groups of 2, develop a story in a 1-2 minute timeframe about a school appropriate scenario using only sounds, no video.  We were allowed to use a maximum of 7 words throughout the project, which are essential to represent further what was going on the scenes.

Our group developed a story based on a man that was at a party and was offered a drink that made him vomit. 

During brainstorming, we had pretty good organization and we had a really good idea flow, meaning we did not have any trouble in agreeing with what the other person thought was right for the film. The outline really helped me be organized by following the timeline as we previously thought, and gave me the ability to imagine the final project even before I started editing. I relayed a lot on the fading of sounds, as it was really needed when the character was feeling dizzy, anytime the door was opened, when sounds were starting to fade because he left the room, and other more instances.  

We did a good job in the organization and communication amongst us, which made things way easier. We contacted frequently and shared new ways and ideas that we could include in the final project to make the best out of what we had done. On the other hand, we could have implemented more Foley into the project, or make the voice recordings better, which I feel are maybe the weak point of the story. 

Here is our final piece: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbftnrtRVRg