Media Studies: The Journey of our Videos: #19 Genre Hybridity

Back to ugly betty…

This show will be mentioned a couple of times, simply because it is one of the best pieces of media to analyze, from its sound, its editing, its storyline, everything about is thought out beautifully , making it have a highlight in all of my blogs (well not all ~ i am going to make a ugly betty counter).

SO why this again? Ugly Betty is a hybrid of genres itself, it is not only a Comedy, not even just a Drama, but also a Romance. This culmination of genre makes the show entertaining, and one of a kind. All these are aspects of genre hybridity.

What is genre hybridity?

Genre hybridity is simply the act/mixture of two or more genres to create one. For example there are: “romantic comedies (romance + comedy), action-horror (action + horror), and sci-fi westerns (sci-fi + western), each bringing unique elements from their parent genres.” [fiveable].

Reflecting the major changes in society, gene hybritidyt began, and became popular arojund the late 20th century and early 21st century, marking a new era in film. Genre hybridity brings more flexibility to a film, I am not trying to say classic aint great, but with genre hybridity, it can broaden the uniqueness of a film.

Although, there is some debate on genre hybridity. According to fiveable, it states that “Critics may view hybrid genres differently; some celebrate them for their creativity while others may dismiss them as lacking in depth or coherence.” So genre hybridity can offer extra creativity, but also make way for filmmakers to add a bunch of stuff in a film, without any meaning.

Couple examples (beside Ugly Betty) ...

Grease (1978; musical, comedy, romance, coming-of-age)

I mean, this movie is peak. Who knew it was a pinnacle of genre hybrid movies? (plenty of people i bet…but you get my excitement). Grease is set 20 years before its release date, telling the story of high schoolers who fell in love in the summer (Sandy and Danny), and trying to rekindle their romance during the school year. Catchy songs, funny jokes, great romance, and relatable? Just 10/10.

Logan (2017: superhero, western)

Logan tells the story of the famous (or infamous) Wolverine. This movie tells the story of him being an “anti-hero” in a western movie style. According to Taste of Cinema, “The action this time around is brutal, man vs man (or mutant)- straight from an old school western like The Wild Bunch. The swansong for Wolverine works because he is re-envisioned as a Western hero, in the vein of Eastwood in Unforgiven and Alan Ladd in Shane.” This movie shows how classic comics can be shown in a different light.

What is my genre?

For my film opening, I initially wanted to do a romance-comedy (aka rom com) , but I thought it was unrealistic to convey, with the idea I had for the film intro. So ultimately, for this film intro, I will continue the romance theme, but with a drama aspect, creating a “rom dram” (I totally made that up by the way…).

To convey a “rom dram”, there must be chemistry, but also a conflict. There has to be an established spark, but also something that interferes or dwindles that spark. In my storyboard blog, (number 22), I will divulge further details on the plot of my film intro: Yeah, What A Great Valentines (2025) ~ a bit of a mouthful, but hey, I like it.

I'm going to start including my schedule in every blog so you can see in real time what I get done (and don’t get done…)

So there has been some setbacks… take a look

January 18th-20th: Further blogs on idea
January 27th: blogs due
February 1st: chose filming location
February 3rd: Blogs due, reveal title of film intro
February 7th: ask Frances (again) to be in video and write the plot/dialogue [half done]
February 10th: figure out costumes, camera, and editing software (AND BLOGS DUE)