Codes and Conventions
1.Audience:
Aimed at
female audience.
2.12 – 15 certificate to
maximise the audience
3.A typical romance genre would include
sexuality, status, gender and relationships.
4.Narrative:
falling
in love, dating, kissing
5.Often a voiceover is used to introduce the love
theme
6.Main characters are
introduced –
attractive female and male
7.Setting:
they are
normally set in
an urban
environment, a beach, a school etc, places where a chance encounter would
happen.
8.When a
romance film opens, it is likely that much of the setting will be shown to the audience
from the
use of establishing shots and wide shots showing characters and much of the setting
and area
behind them.9. Camera angles: establishing shots of the setting which is recognisable to the audience, close up shots of the main characters so the audience and see their facial expressions, two shots so that you can see the relationship between the two main characters.
10. Sound: Digetic sound- The dialogue usually has something to do with romance, heart-break, love and relationships
Non digetic- The music normally matches the genre with soft instruments such as violins and pianos.
Cliches
According to popular lore, the romantic film is based on a simple formula: boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy finds girl again.
Romances are constructed around the idea that love is an obstacle course, but if you keep your nose to the grindstone, the rewards can be immense.
Romances are built upon the idea that Prince Charming actually exists, but he may be a bit rough around the edges or temporarily unavailable
Powerful, ubiquitous cliches associated with the genre include the bride or groom suddenly getting ditched at the altar
In a number of contemporary romances, the male lead has a best friend who is a lovable slob. Not until he can ditch this slob friend is he ready for the big time, relationship-wise.
For romances to work, the heroine should initially be involved with a possessive creep
