Dystopian Sci-Fi and Speculative Fiction

Dystopian Sci-Fi and Speculative Fiction 

Dystopian Sci-Fi is a genre of speculative fiction that depicts a fictional view on the future of the world and society that is different or unusual from the modern world. Conventionally, a dystopian piece of media would be characterized by fear or oppression in society and would be an overall negative distortion of the future. This can be explored in instances/themes such as government control or anarchy, environmental devastation and any form of catastrophic futuristic change in society. 

Dystopian media can be used to make comments or criticisms on current social, political or environmental issues that are therefore exaggerated or depicted as a worst-case scenario. This is distinct from science fiction as dystopian focuses on the future of society and any fictional changes that could cause panic, fear or dehumanization. 

In Neon Rated trailers for the film ‘2073’, conventions of dystopian sci-fi are demonstrated through themes of violence and threat in the ‘wrecked’ streets and from people of authority, also criticisms of technology such as ai and exploring the speculative fiction of ‘surveillance drones’. Key settings in the genre are found in the 2073 trailer such as vandalized streets in ruin that become the norm. Additonally, in dystopian texts, there can be 'safe spaces’ hidden from the rest of society that offer safety and attempt to replicate the peaceful and free historical society. 

The 2073 trailer uses video footage from today such as violence, riots, protests and inequality whilst depicting a film set in a dystopian future which is relevant to the context of modern society as the film is currently being made/unreleased due to the fact that developers are able to use footage from this era and use it under the context of a violent and cataclysmic world, highlighting issues in modern society and how they could become our own dystopian future.