Session One - Tuesday 10th May
Horror
Ian Long
One of the most successful genres in recent years, the various strands of horror are constantly evolving - so how can writers confidently satisfy the ever-present need for cathartic thrills, shocks and insights? We will look closely at the elements demanded and the deeper issues at play in this most visceral of all genres.
Book whole course For more details and to book session 1
Session Two - Tuesday 12 July (postponed from 24th May)
Romantic Comedy
Gabriella Apicella
RomCom gives us a chance to survey the comedy field and look at the key types of comedy - what they require and how writers need to approach each in a very different way. We discuss how RomCom can be mangled in the wrong hands, and how a writer who understands the genre can create great, satisfying and enjoyable cinema.
Book whole course For more details and to book session 2
Session Three - Tuesday 21st June
Thriller and Film Noir
Ian Long
From Hitchcock to the Coen Brothers, Fritz Lang to Paul Greengrass, film-makers have entertained audiences with thrillers. The word covers a broad and ubiquitous range of subgenres. But how do we create the intrigue and suspense such stories require, as well as the right kinds of characters to people them? And how is the thriller changing?
Using clips from classic and contemporary films, we'll discuss how various kinds of thriller achieve their effects - and show how the film noir genre continues to reassert itself in contemporary cinema.
Book whole course For more details and to book session 3
Session Four - Tuesday 6th December (POSTPONED from September)
Social Drama and Coming Of Age
Gabriella Apicella
With Social Drama we move to a genre that has remained popular for decades, both in commercial and artistic terms, while offering the widest variety, from Personal Drama to Medical Drama to Road Movie and Passage Rite/Coming of Age. If you are writing for Multiplex, Indie cinema or modern TV series or one-off, or indeed have a Romantic (or other Drama) subplot to another kind of story, you need to know about this very character-based genre.
Book whole course For more details and to book session 4
Session Five - Tuesday 8th November
Science Fiction, Speculative Futures and Twisted Realities
Ian Long
Some of the best recent and classic movies have come from this group of genres - a natural home for "high-concept" stories. We'll look at the many utopian, dystopian, satirical and philosophical ideas which these tales can broach, and watch clips from a wide variety of films demonstrating a fascinating range of alternative realities.
Book whole course For more details and to book session 5
Session Six - Tuesday 22nd November
True Story/Historical and Biopic
Gabriella Apicella
True and historical stories bring their own advantages, but their special features serve as a useful reflection on the central issues of Genre as a whole and so make a very appropriate subject for summing up the series.
Book whole course For more details and to book session 6
