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48Hours - A Furious Filmmaking Competition

GENRES

The term 'genre' in film terms, simply means movies that share similar conventions. We define these similar characteristics under one category, or genre.Your team will randomly draw one genre before the competition begins. There are no easy genres, and seemingly difficult ones are opportunities for teams to manipulate their chosen genre and create something truly innovative. Don't be afraid to think outside the square.If you don't understand your genre, you'll be starting off on the wrong foot. So make sure you understand all of them by watching some examples or reading up on them.

You do not have to make a film based on one of the sub-genres - they are simply there to show you how diverse a particular genre can be. It's up to you where you want to take your genre. Of course we ultimately want you to create something original, so feel free to experiment. The most important judging criteria in 48HOURS is how well a team sticks, subverts or experiments with its given genre.

2009 Genres

  1. THE FAMILY MOVIE These can be pretty wide ranging. Sometimes they are films that cater to families in that they are G rated fare that appeal to young and old. Films that are centered around wholesome family values. Sometimes they are cen tered around the family themselves, other times its the what the children get up to. Usually there's a moral to the story and everything works out in the end. See : A Christmas Story, The Incredibles, Benji, Cheaper by The Dozen, Its A Wonderful Life,

  2. THE HORROR MOVIE Self explanatory.

  3. THE ROMANCE MOVIE Light or dark.

  4. THE NATURE RUN AMOK Man versus Beast or Man versus Nature. Either way its all about conflict and overcoming the odds. Covers animal attacks, storms, viruses the works.

  5. THE M NIGHT SHYAMALAN BIG TWIST MOVIE M Night is a director who carved a career out of films that feature big twists. The Sixth Sense, The Village etc. Come up with any story you want, just deliver a twist that no one sees coming. The whole point of your film is a twist that either satisfies or completely confounds the audience. Up to you how you want to play it.

  6. MUSICAL or DANCE Sing or boogie. Your call.

  7. THE POLITICALLY INCORRECT MOVE or RELIGIOUS MOVIE You can either make a film whose plot or characters revel in poor taste or one that follows a more holy road.

  8. THE CONSPIRACY MOVIE Who said that? Conspiracy movies focus on paranoia, big brother, the men in black or those people in the shadows who manipulate all of us. see Eagle Eye, Manchurian Candidate, Parallax View, Brazil.

  9. THE EDUCATIONAL MOVIE These were common place a few decades ago. They were designed for schools or workplaces. They are there to instruct or inform us about something. They can be dry, droll or funny. They ranged from "How To" through to scaremongering ones about "Dangerous Driving" or playing with sharp objects. Most were documentary but some told narrative stories.

  10. THE REVENGE MOVIE Films that feature a revenge plot. They're all about someone or something getting even. They can be light hearted like Revenge of the Nerds or they can be dark like Payback. They can be one for one deals or they can escalate like in War of the Roses.

  11. THE PARALLEL WORLD MOVIE The most well known example would be Wizard of Oz. These are films that take place in an alternate reality. They could be just like earth, they could be happening on earth in another dimension. What if evolution went another way? What if Rome didn't fall? What if you could go from one world to the next? The world could be so subtle that we might not even know it is a parallel world until... or it could be a world when men are slaves. Your call.

  12. THE REAL TIME MOVIE Exactly what it says. Your short must take place in real time. Just like the TV show 24 or the film Phonebooth. It doesn't have to be one-shot. You can do whatever you want as long as your story unfolds in real time. Can you use flashbacks? flash forwards? split screens? hidden cuts? Thats all up to you - just tell a story that uses its real time construct well. Take the challenge and tell it in real time. Can range from thrilling to humourous.