Science Fiction/Fantasy Genre

Beginnings Can be traced to ancient Greek epic poems about various gods, monsters, and fantastic voyages to far-off worlds Can also be traced to fables used to explain natural phenomena and to integrate religious beliefs into everyday experience

Term Science Fiction Came into use in mid 19th century Sub genre of fantasy Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” (1818) is arguable the first step towards modernized science fiction stories

History of Science-Fiction Films 1st sci-fi movie – George Melies’s A Trip to the Moon (1902) break through special effects at the time 1927 – Fritz Lang’s Metropolis 1930s – 1950s – low-budged “B-movies”, Often associated with horror Usually about scientific experiments gone wrong Usually had a mad scientist of some sort

1950s – Golden Age of Science Fiction After WWII and the Cold War – American Science Fiction became More political Responded to the Red Scare Addressed the evils of communism Addressed the evils of war and nuclear weapons 1968 – Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey taken more seriously, broke through another level of poetry and wonder

1970s – big-budget science fiction films filled with special effects Successful sci-fi movies include Star Wars, E.T., Matrix series, Alien, Avatar

Elements of Sci-Fi Films Not bound to a particular area or time period like westerns or war movies Usually contain spaceships, alien worlds, robots, and/or futuristic gadgets Subject often involves either a strange new world with strange creatures and strange new technology, or an interpretation of our world in the future with strange technology or creatures

Sci-Fi Movies Typically Have One or More of the Following Elements World in which the story takes place Rules of the world where the story takes place Strange technology and/or creatures Joseph Campbell’s The Hero’s Journey Character that is an underdog who learns about a power that he/she never knew he/she had before A mentor who guides the hero