This is a simple resource for writers or filmmakers. A good way to start developing your idea for your story is to decide on the genre. This list is a work in progress and is free for anyone to use.
Classic Greek Genres
- Drama
- Comedy
- Melodrama
- Farce
- Tragedy
Modern Genres
- Action & Adventure
- Adventure (separate from Action)
- Comedy
- Drama
- Fantasy
- Horror
- Romance
- Romantic Drama
- Sci-Fi
- Thriller / Suspense
- War
- Westerns
- Erotic / Erotic Thriller
Sub-Genres & Styles
Comedy Variants
- Black Comedy
- Screwball
- Slapstick
- Spoof / Parody / Satire
- Romantic Comedy
- Quirky Comedy (Wes Anderson-style)
- Gross-Out Comedy
- Dramedy (Comedy-Drama blend)
- Dark Satire
Horror & Supernatural
- Ghost / Haunting
- Monster
- Vampire
- Werewolf
- Zombie
- Slasher / Psycho
- Supernatural Thriller
- Occult
- Creature Feature
- Giallo (Italian Thriller)
- Children’s Horror & Sci-Fi
- Body Horror
- Eco-Horror / Nature Strikes Back
- Folk Horror
- Lovecraftian / Cosmic Horror
- Haunted Technology
- Psychological Horror (distinct from Thriller)
- Experimental Horror
Sci-Fi & Fantasy Sub-Genres
- Alien Invasion
- Cyberpunk
- Post-Apocalyptic
- Sword and Sandal
- Sword and Sorcery
- Futuristic
- Superhero
- Dieselpunk
- Steampunk
- Atompunk
- Alternate History
- Space Opera
- Hard Science Fiction
- Urban Fantasy
- Fairy Tale / Folklore Fantasy
Crime / Mystery
- Crime & Gangster
- Detective & Mystery
- Courtroom / Trial
- Police / Cop
- Whodunnit
- Caper / Heist
- Spy Film
- Techno-Thriller
- Neo-Noir
- Legal Thriller
Dramatic / Character-Focused
- Coming of Age
- Epic / Myth
- Biography
- Biopic
- Historical / Historical Fiction
- Picaresque
- Road Film
- Road Trip (Comedy/Drama)
- Psychological
- After-Life (non-religious)
- Epic Fictional Life Stories
- Medical Drama
- Legal Drama
- Social Issue / Message Drama
- Family Drama / Domestic Drama
Experimental / Artistic
- Animation / Anime
- Art Film
- Avant-Garde
- Experimental / Expressionist
- Surrealism
- Mumblecore
- Found Footage
- Cinéma Vérité
- Cinéma du look
- Film de Femme
- Slow Cinema
- Metafiction / Meta-Cinema
- Interactive / Experimental Narrative
Genre Hybrids
- Buddy Movie
- Family
- Musicals / Dance / Music
- Silent Film
- Mockumentary
- Documentary
- Docudrama
- Anthology Film
- Propaganda
- Horror-Comedy
- Romantic Horror
- Sci-Fi Western
Other Themes & Settings
- Christmas / Holiday
- Holiday Film
- Pirate / Swashbucklers
- Martial Arts
- Sports
- Disaster
- Survival
- Political
- Prehistoric
- Prison
- Travelogue / Journey
Exploitation / Cult Sub-Genres
- Cult
- Exploitation
- Blaxploitation
- Mockbuster / Pastiche
- Transgressive Cinema
Director’s Styles (-esque)
- Alfonso Cuarón – Narrative Drama
- Bryan Singer – Sci-Fi; Fantasy Action
- Burt Kennedy – Western
- Christopher Nolan – Action
- David O. Russell – Action-Comedy
- Edgar Wright – Action-Comedy
- Guillermo del Toro – Sci-Fi Fantasy
- J. J. Abrams – Sci-Fi Action
- John Carpenter – Horror; Sci-Fi / Fantasy
- John Ford – Western
- John Hughes – Coming of Age / Teen
- John Waters – Absurd Comedy
- Joss Whedon – Sci-Fi; Fantasy
- Luc Besson – Sci-Fi Fantasy; Narrative Drama
- Michael Bay – Action
- Miyazaki – Anime
- Peter Jackson – Fantasy
- Quentin Tarantino – Action-Drama
- Robert Zemeckis – Fantasy
- Sergio Leone – Spaghetti Western
- Spierig Brothers – Horror
- Stanley Kubrick – Sci-Fi Fantasy
- Terrence Malick – Drama
- Terry Gilliam – Fantasy
- Tim Burton – Fantasy
- Wachowski Siblings – Sci-Fi Action
- Wes Anderson – Quirky Comedy
- Zack Snyder – Action
Favorite Film Themes (Examples)
- Epic Fictional Life Stories
Forrest Gump, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Bicentennial Man - Dramatic Vampire Movies
Let The Right One In, Byzantium, Interview with the Vampire, The Hunger, Hunted - Children’s Horror & Sci-Fi Movies
Little Monsters, Hocus Pocus (1993)
Other External Resources
Universal Tropes – via tvtropes.org
Narrative Devices – via tvtropes.org
Narrative Tropes – via tvtropes.org
Plots – via tvtropes.org
Genres by Michael M. Frankel is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
This document was compiled by a group of film students and no copyright infringement is intended and any similarity to other works is completely coincidental unless otherwise indicated.
Michael M. Frankel 