Codes and Conventions

Codes are systems of signs, which are used to create meaning. Codes can be split into two categories; Technical and Symbolic.

Technical codes are all the ways that equipment is used to create meaning in a film/genre. An example would be camera work in a film.

Symbolic codes shows what is beneath the surface for the audience to see. For example, how a character acts to show their emotions.

Conventions are a generally accepted ways of doing certain things. There are conventions in any medium, for example, the use of interviewee quotes in a print article, but conventions are genre specific.

Codes and conventions are used together in any study of genre - it's not enough to discuss a technical code used, such as camera work, without saying how it is used conventionally.

For example, lighting in used in any genre. It is a convention of horror genres to have dark lighting to show fear or suspense - an integral part of any horror film.