A2 Media Studies Coursework - Documentaries: February 2010

Saturday, 27 February 2010

Juxtaposition of conflicting narrative viewpoints
Shocking archive footage, creates realism
CCTV
Revolves around Michael Moore's own opinions and views, there is no chance for others to explain themselves - he gets a lot of criticism for this
He appears more prominent in his documentaries in the latter stages of his career, this technique is working for him so he continues to feature heavily in his documentaries
Use of sarcasm/humour: says the American Government are not worried about healthcare because they have more important things on their mind - the 50th anniversary of marshmellows

Investigative documentary
Use of satirical humour; ironic
Jolly American music during opening scene
Sarcastic, monotonous voiceover narration
Michael Moore presents himself predominantly throughout the documentary to uncover/expose and reveal the situation
His point of view is how easy it is to obtain a gun
Uses archive footage - old black and white footage going through the ages
Very clever use of music - 'what a wonderful world' juxtaposed against disturbing images

Controversial
Funny
Political
Thought provoking
Opens using archive footage
Michael Moore's voiceover is from the beginning
Slow motion effect emphasises George Bush's stupidity
Spectator can see what effect the interview is having on the interviewee by showing them preparing for the interview
Use of blank black screen and just sound effects for impact

Lots of use of CGI (Computer Generated Images) to help explain and construct/re-create events

Nature/Wildlife e.g. March of the Penguins - heavily reliant on narration/voiceover
Investigation e.g Macyntre Undercover, Watchdog - topical issues (crime, size zero)
Docu-soap/docu-drama e.g. United 93 - using actual events but putting them into dramatic reconstructions
Mockumentary e.g. The Office - fiction which parody the forms and conventions of generic documentaries, often for humour
Reality e.g. Big Brother
Fly on the Wall e.g. The Family - gives the audience an unmediated access to the world
Expository
Interactive/reflexive
Personal
Observational
Poetic/Avant grade

A generic documentary:

Tells a good story
Conveys a personal response/critical perspective
Includes interesting characters who are tryring to achieve a target e.g. proving a point
Contains dramatic suspense
Encourages the audience to consider the thematic content
Evokes interest, anticipation, dramatic tension and relation to characters
Develops the audience's knowledge in relation to a theme
Contains a confrontation between opposing forces, which reaches a climax and is then resolved