Cambridge Portfolio Project: Genre Research Blog Activity

How is it Drama?

The Drama genre is considered the "backbone" of serious storytelling because it is the genre that communicates the emotional experiences of life. Dramas are intended to be generally realistic stories with comprehensible characters, life situations, and challenging human relationships. It would be best appreciated by audiences wanting more emotional depth and humanity in their stories.

Content:

Realistic Settings and Situations: The settings and situations of the drama films are realistic, where attempts are made to show the daily life and issues of society.

EX: The movie "Marriage Story" (2019) unravels the raw and heart-wrenching process of divorce for the two. Through this film, one will see the complications involved in love, the hurt, and the emotional turmoil a separation creates, and automatically feels for the characters.

Character Development: Drama films deal with complex changes in the character and go deeper into emotional journeys, showing personal growth and eventual changes.

EX. "The Pursuit of Happyness" 2006 vividly shows the defeat and subsequent victory of the protagonist. The movie is a perfect example of how Chris Gardner, played by Will Smith, rises from being homeless into a stockbroker. It focuses on his persistence, willpower, and emotional turmoil.

Emotional Themes: Most of the common themes are love, conflict, loss, redemption, and moral dilemmas that touch audiences' feelings personally.

EX. "A Beautiful Mind" (2001) addresses main themes of mental disorder and genius. The film is a biography of John Nash, performed by Russell Crowe, suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, showing how he fought with his disease while contributing to mathematics in order to make the audience feel both admiration and sympathy.

Conflict and Resolution: Dramas often revolve around internal and external conflicts, with characters striving to overcome obstacles, reconcile differences, or achieve personal goals.

EX. "Good Will Hunting" (1997) is a case that shows Will Hunting's Matt Damon inner turmoil and his path to self-acceptance through his therapist played by Robin Williams.

Relatable Emotions: Drama is a genre involving any emotion a person would experience: joy, sadness, anger, love-an emotional process with the audience.

EX. "Forrest Gump" (1994) takes the audience through the emotional highs and lows of Forrest's (Tom Hanks) life, making them laugh, cry, and reflect on the value of kindness and perseverance.

Production Techniques:

Drama film usually features soft, natural light with an almost deliberately selected color palette to give a realistic feeling to the film and extra emotion. Close-up shots and medium shots of the protagonist's expressions and response keeps the audience glued. Diegetic and non-diegetic sound makes all the difference, subtle music added to crucial emotional moments and transitions.

EX. In "The Godfather" (1972), the use of a haunting score by Nino Rota is employed to underscore Michael Corleone’s transformation, with the music often signaling pivotal moments in his rise to power.

Marketing:

Drama films generally attract a wide audience, from the teen years through middle-aged and more mature audiences who appreciate detailed storytelling and emotional involvement. This is dedicated to the audiences who believe in the substance of character and theme, reflective sometimes cathartic.

Most film posters for dramas have central ideas depicting how deep and focused a film is in terms of narration. Many of them contain close-ups of the main characters' faces to show raw and intimate expressions of emotion. These could also include symbolic imagery or scenes reflective of the central conflict or theme of the film, thus giving possible viewers a sneak peek into the emotional journey which they are going to be taken on.

Samples:

The movie The Shawshank Redemption, 1994, narrates the life of Andy Dufresne, a banker who was sentenced to life imprisonment on charges of murdering his wife and her lover, even though he claims he's innocent. The movie traces Andy's friendship with another inmate, Red played by Morgan Freeman, and his subsequent escape from Shawshank State Penitentiary. The movie deals with issues such as hope, friendship, and redemption. It shows the transformation of Andy from a silent, resigned convict into a man with a plan. The story discovers the grim and gruesome level of prisoner's life and strong bond of affection shared between Andy and Red and can be called a powerful narrative in human bonding. The lighting in the prison is very naturalistic for the realism of many of the somber scenes. Close-up shots show many of the emotions of the characters, much for major dialogues. The score by Thomas Newman works together with key scenes to better convey emotion. When many people think about the movie poster for "The Shawshank Redemption", it is usually an image of Andy in the rain, arms outstretched, symbolizing his free release and emotional peak of the movie. It's these images that coupled with critical acclaim, create a mass appeal and are intended to inspire from the storyline.

The Fault in Our Stars" is a romantic drama adapted from a bestseller by John Green. The story revolves around Hazel Grace Lancaster, a cancer-stricken teenager, and her only love-Augustus Waters-being the victim of the same lethal disease. First true love and the loss during one's brief life is a major theme the film has touched upon. It traces the emotional journey of Hazel and Augustus through their diseases and their love. The story truly reveals many deep, honest moments of the couple, something so typical for drama movies, with raw emotion. There is quite a bit of soft, natural light throughout the movie, mostly for tender moments of Hazel and Augustus. Close-ups and medium shots of their emotional expressions and interaction help the audience immerse themselves into their story. The soundtrack features songs from several artists and gives more depth to the portrayal of love and loss. For "The Fault in Our Stars," the pre-release campaign was emotional, with trailers and posters embracing Hazel and Augustus warmly and showing the romantic and heartfelt angles of the movie. This is a hook to both the loyal following of the book and to audiences craving a touching, sentimental film.