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INTRODUCTION:
The classification of cinematography poses into types of conceptual and theoretical problems that affect many levels, starting with defining the concept of the film genre, through the relationship of the genre with the group of controlling powers, and reaching to the question of the connection between the genre genre and the receiving and within it the popular reception in Morocco, on these issues this debate comes with the researcher Youssef Ait Hamo to set some concepts to help close the film in the context of naturalization of its affiliation.
It is not a truism to acknowledge the classification of films into genres; Are there general principles that facilitate the issue of classification?
Before classifying films and arranging them within the framework of genera and genres, or according to standards and criteria, the following epistemological principles must be considered:
1 - Each film must be considered an original and unique artistic phenomenon, as it does not make sense to resemble another film, as creativity is linked to difference, individuality and the breaking of the prevailing and traditional artistic constraints.
2 - A distinction must be made between two types of films, films that are classified in the context of fixed and fixed types, especially commercial and mass films, and films that are difficult to arrange in each arrangement under a specific field, which is the state of the authors' films.
3 - The film product attracts two logic: on the one hand the logic of money, profit and ideology, and on the other hand the logic of artistic creativity and collective or individual innovation, the first logic calls for the necessity of classification and respect for the laws of races, and the second logic assumes the breaking of restrictions and glorification of aesthetic difference.
4 - The film is based on special structural principles, namely comparison, characteristics and difference.
Intuitive that you tend to employ the word gender instead of sex, perhaps out of fear that the literary theory will be dropped from the cinema, and perhaps also to preserve the concept of sex for male or female directive tendency, from there I ask a direct question what is the film classification and its functions?
Classification is a mental and cultural process that aims to arrange films according to their contents, techniques and aesthetics, and is based on comparing films according to local or global standards, which is either spontaneous with the ordinary viewer, i.e. based on the amount of consumption and daily experience, or scientific as we find it when filmmakers and critics, which aims To facilitate the study and analysis of films, and it is related to perfunctory and pedagogical goals as well as has commercial objectives.
In connection with the theoretical framework for the classification of films, can we define a procedural definition for the concept of film genre?
To start with, it must be noted that attention to the concept of film genres was not achieved only through the passage of years since the birth of cinema, and after achieving a very important accumulation of films, the difference between the genres became a tangible reality, from the horizon of waiting for the genre genre to the allocation of global festivals, its programs for the type of film Particularly, such as the coral "Avorias" for horror movies, and the "Deauville" festival for the police movie ... Back to the question it can be said that defining the concept of the film genre is a very complicated process, given the cultural heritage inherent in the literary genre, and given the commercial stakes related to the classification of films, despite the That the film type can be determined procedurally as follows: The film type is a group of films that share the same artistic and thematic features that differ from one group to another. Each film has Sunnahs, codes and laws that suggest its type, and through it it can be recognized by the viewer, we mention for example, posters, style Subject, photography techniques, decoration ... But what must be emphasized is that classification rules and laws are not fixed and eternal, but are subject to development and transformation, and are subject to historical and social conditions, we know well how That cowboy movies were prevalent in the fifties and sixties, and how science fiction films are successful in North Africa and pariah in the south, and it can be said that the comparison between the varieties by the viewer depends on social and psychological changes and conditions, the viewer chooses a film type based on his own culture and his political and moral positions But also, based on the effect of advertising discourse on his psyche, but in the absence of cultural education for attention to what is consumed, it is also assumed that there are scenes that consume movies without paying attention to gender and classification issues, but since the classification is linked to economic, cultural and artistic bets that do not bear the error, the direct stakeholders Mainly they are film makers, producer and director.
The filmmakers seem well aware that the popularity of the film genre is linked to a broad base of consumers that protect it economically in the market, while the consumer only has posters and advertisement links as an indication of the genre and they are insidious and insufficient indicators, so how can we understand the existence of more popular types of other ones?
Theoretically, it can be said that the popularity of the film genre is linked to social and ideological variables, and is subject to political management. As for culturally, it is not possible to focus on the differentiation between films or the hierarchy of film genres. To evaluate the artistic and aesthetic dimension, however, it can be noted the brilliance of some types, such as the drama film in which "Elia Kazan" starred, and the adventure movie in which we starred "Zemikis" without losing sight of the war movie and the police movie, and the long list includes more than 50 types and 100 sub-genres. .
Not long ago, the talk about the purity and purity of the film genre became shaky, because the filmmakers realized that commercial logic by imposing the overlapping of several genres in the same film, is this not enough to remove the concept of the genre from the cinematic critical dictionary?
The process of culture allows evolution towards two different directions: difference, branching and multiplicity in the beginning, then addition, overlap and composition in a second stage, and it is clear that cinema did not depart from this rule, for for years and decades the types branched and multiplied to the extent that we find within one species several branches The police movie, for example, branches into the black film, the crime movie, and the detective's movie ... More than this, it can be emphasized that part of the artistic value of any tape has become linked to the extent of its ability to combine different types in a harmonious way, and from it it is difficult to ascertain what the purity of the film genre has made, Today, for example, the documentary film has been depicted in a fictional manner (docudrama), and the fictional film is depicted in a documentary way (projet blaire), for example, and we are accustomed to the war movie that includes romance and comedy, the interaction between the types is the prevailing rule today, but nevertheless the classification remains It is possible depending on the dominant plot of the film, as war movies dominate scenes and the plot of war, and police films remain based on scenes and a police plot, and so on.
ship between the popularity of the film genre and the authority of the public, and in order not to risk giving this power the decisive characteristic, it is necessary to acknowledge the existence and overlap of other powers that are divided between what is strategic and what is technical. On the production of species popularity, what is the possible or at least possible classification?
It can be said that the movie is a space and a battlefield between a group of powers, these powers that overlap, dialogue, interweave, and fuse one in the other, and practice a kind of violence to significantly affect the embrace of one species at the expense of another, that the choice of types is a power exercised by several parties, and if we want To classify some of them, we can mention the following:
1 - The authority of the producer and the authority of the production companies that control the choice of the genre and the content of the film. This authority is linked to commercial and economic bets, and it is an authority that powers its powers from other powers to all intermediaries and workers in the field of cinematography.
2 - The director's authority, according to his perception of the film type and its aesthetic taste.
We talked about the relationship between the popularity of the film genre and the authority of the public, and in order not to risk giving this power the decisive characteristic, it is necessary to acknowledge the existence and overlap of other powers that are divided between what is strategic and what is artistic. It frame the overlapping of this fierce struggle between these powers, if we want to arrange these powers according to the strength of their influence On the production of species popularity, what is the possible or at least possible classification?
It can be said that the movie is a space and a battlefield between a group of powers, these powers that overlap, dialogue, interweave, and fuse one in the other, and practice a kind of violence to significantly affect the embrace of one species at the expense of another, that the choice of types is a power exercised by several parties, and if we want to classify some of them, we can mention the following:
1 - The authority of the producer and the authority of the production companies that control the choice of the genre and the content of the film. This authority is linked to commercial and economic bets, and it is an authority that powers its powers from other powers to all intermediaries and workers in the field of cinematography.
2 - The director's authority, according to his perception of the film type and its aesthetic duke.
3 - The authority to monitor and protect the consumer, which selects the species according to the standards of the Grand Duke, the principles of morality, and according to the ideology and policy used in the country, in Morocco, for example, he noticed a group of film types for the show, and naturally, we should not overlook the film's authority as text and as a letter with an internal structure and grammatical laws that guide reading and analysis Interpretation, and abolishes a set of readings and interpretations, in addition to the authority of the public and the authority of the critic linked to the authority of the mind, in general it can be said that the popularity of some kind of film is subject to material need (filmmakers) and psychological needs (the audience) and political needs (the state)
In addition to your interest in cinema, you have an interest in popular culture, especially the relationship of the popular person with cinema. We are interested in knowing how to deal with classification issues, based on the spontaneity of viewing supported by the huge amount of viewing.
It must be pointed out at the beginning that there are many differences and differences between the popular classification of films and the classification in circulation in the global culture.
1 - Age factor: where children notice action, suspense and adventure films, as opposed to adults who tend to have films based on the scenario of social and cultural plot.
2- Sex factor: Males generally tend to make action movies, while females prefer romantic and social films.
3 - Factor of the cultural level: People with limited education tend to films with a simple and clear scenario, and genres that do not need efforts to follow and understand them.
4 - Geographical location factor: The encounter here lies between the static of the Badia, which tends towards films with topics close to the concerns of this population and with a cultural proximity, and the inhabitants of the city who are looking for adventure and travel far to escape the complications and monotony of daily life.
But despite the objectivity of these variables, field research in the field of film consumption in some cities, such as Casablanca and Marrakech, confirms the existence of exceptions. Some females prefer violent films, and people who do not enjoy high culture prefer culturally sophisticated films, but what can be emphasized Today, in a formula close to assertion, is the continued dominance of Hollywood-made movie genres. Tastes are the same as the age, gender, and geography of the audience.
We may not disagree much about this analysis and its conclusions, but the uncontrolled so far are the criteria for popular classification of films. Ed appears to be a parallel classification for the usual classifications in cinematic culture. In some cases, it also uses attributes that are at the heart of the dictionary of popular culture. Can we know the foundations of this classification and attributes? Traded?
The popular classification of the ordinary viewer is based on intuition and spontaneous experience, and objective features are rarely adopted, and due to the absence of accuracy in this classification, the number of film types defined by the popular person is few compared to what is prevalent, as the iconic illiteracy pushes to confuse the types and slip towards the error Poor classification, so it can be said that the average viewer adopts the following measures:
1 - Depending on the language and the country, it is an Indian film, an Arabic film, a Chinese movie, a French movie, and it is noted that the French movie is an attribute of the spoken language in the film, whatever its nationality.
2 - According to the content and treatment, here a distinction is made, for example, between the Karate film, the cowboy movie, the "Knocking the Sword" movie, the war movie, the laughing film ...
3- Standard classification: As if the movie (Khobti) is said to be any wretched or wonderful movie, which means wonderful
4- Classification according to the periods of presentation. In the halls that used to display two tapes in the same class, the first tape is often called “history” and the second tape is “geographical”
5 - According to the dramatic structure, as if the movie (a story and a dabze) is said to mean a movie of movement with a knitted story
6 - According to the heroes and actors, such as Harkal, Farid Shawqi, Shahrukh Khan, Rashid Al Wali ...
If you allow us to dwell on the problem of genre in the Moroccan film, as it appears that the Moroccan cinema does not mean the issue of classification, do we close the door critically to the possibility of talking about the species with the same logic in which we were told to talk about trends in Moroccan cinema due to the absence of influential properties, or are there exceptions?
Attempting to classify films according to artistic and cultural standards is an inevitable consequence of the accumulation occurring in the areas of production, creativity and consumption, and Morocco of the 21st century has not yet reached an acceptable level in these fields, and here lies the difficulty of accurate classification, yet it is possible to distinguish between two types:
1 - Moroccan films are difficult to classify, and they are those films that were affected by some waves of international cinema, such as the new French wave that tried to revolutionize the principle of gender.
2 - Movies that are subject to classification, especially films such as "Weld Al Darb" or "For My Beloved" ...
And if the Moroccan cinema has known victory for some time for the social film, then we have noticed the formation of other types such as the police movie, the road movie, but other types remain absent for productive and artistic conditions, such as horror films, war movies, science fiction movies, animated films and even political films And here we must define the type of political movie as a critical film against the authority, and based on this analogy, all Moroccan films that were referred to as political films are in fact historical films because they are dating for a period of years of embarrassment, and the current political issues are not discussed at all due to the diligence undertaken by Criticism to justify this classification.
In sum, we still need the clarity of the Moroccan film codes to be able to be classified accurately according to the standards and standards in circulation in the world.
Youssef Ait Hammou
University professor, researcher in image psychology, media and popular culture.
Currently framed for a meeting under the title Culture and Art (image aesthetics)
Framed for scenario and film analysis workshops in the school field
His works include:
