Documentary: Research

 A Level Media Studies

Here is my research on a few docuseries for this documentary project. The first 5 minutes of documentaries 1-5 are examined. This blog post is written by me (Sharon).

Documentary 1 - American Vandal (2017) (E1)

"American Vandal" is a mockumentary, true-crime documentary conveyed through the presentation of CCTV footage, and interviews, along with images and videos from social media. This documentary narrates a school crime (vandalism) in which everyone is sure Dylan committed this crime and then creates a case to oppose the accusations against him. Audiences of the ages of 18 and above are targeted due to mature images, and perhaps, to those interested in high school narratives. A medium close-up shot is mostly used in interviews which shows their background, however, a close-up shot is utilized whenever it gets emotional - having a sensation of tying the emotions with the audience. In interviews at school, a long shot shows the number of people/teachers as judges gathering, suggesting that the school takes this crime seriously. The voiceover narration is a good help to the audience to keep us on track with the fast-paced documentary - commenting on every scene thoroughly and keeping a serious tone throughout to build the mystery. However, with the narrator's comments and constant exposure to interviews of students, teachers, and many more, the audience is likely to doubt their beliefs on 'who is the actual criminal?' This would have the audience on edge and hook them towards the narrative - longing to see what will happen next. The addition of non-diegetic sounds of cameras clicking whenever pictures of the vandals help in the exaggeration effect of the crime. Moreover, images and footage from social media are shown vertically as they are presumably taken from phones, which indicates this vandalism matter has gone viral on the internet. As these media were inserted appropriately, they were edited to become fast-paced to directly imply chaos and intensity. The central theme and message of this docuseries focus on immaturity and immature humour, such that Dylan and his friends create absurd YouTube content (e.g. nun humping).

Documentary 2 - Death to 2020 (2020)

"Death to 2020" is a deadpan mockumentary circulating on occurrences and happenings all over the globe throughout the destructive year of 2020 presented as a timeline of events. This documentary would be suitable for people ages 16-18 and above due to graphic content and language. The first day of 2020 started off with an intense wildfire in Australia shown via close-up clips and footage of the fire, which may have foreshadowed the rest of the year, with the COVID-19 pandemic being the leading occasion not long after. Some others may include Trump's impeachment trial (the US), Brexit (the UK), the Oscars, the election campaign, cancel culture, and racism, all leading to democracies. This mockumentary involves a narrator guiding the audience all and through who also adds extra information on the topic, such as personal viewpoints, or general additional details - causing the audience to be more open (minded) to external perspectives and further educated. Furthermore, a serious and robotic voice and tone of the narrator are applied as images and footage are inserted (edited to become fast-paced) throughout, perhaps to imply how severe and terrifying these incidents can be. For instance, a visual image of the world map to expose countries that have been influenced by the lockdown covered in black, panning all over at a fast pace to imply how powerful it has impacted the world. Adding on to personal outlooks, these docuseries have included all kinds of people from different backgrounds and hence, diverse experiences on each of the events, for instance, a reporter, the president, the Queen, a scientist on Covid, an average citizen, a spokesperson, professor, a mom, and a  therapist. This would assist in establishing how one single situation can have an effect on different types of people, which at the same time would entertain these audiences. These interviews are typically shot on medium shots that still give the audience a glimpse of their surroundings, however, medium close-ups are utilized whenever their dialogue gets intense, or when their tone intensifies. I would say they have dry-wit humour to portray the ridiculousness and absurdity of these matters. More camera angles are applied to demonstrate contrasts, such as long and aerial shots to expose the atmosphere when the world was still packed, along with time-lapses to reveal chaos before the COVID-19 pandemic. Whereas, a slow-moving camera with establishing shots post the COVID-19 pandemic presents a dead and quiet ambience. The directors' main message would be to educate citizens on the series of events that happened in 2020 and possibly to achieve a greater perspective and mindset on these issues, which has been highly effective on me, as the audience.

Documentary 3 - Formula 1: Drive to Survive (2019) (S1:E1)

This sports docuseries outlines the lives of  Formula 1 drivers both during and outside races, including a glimpse of their personal lives with families, which presents a heartwarming sensation to the audience. These can be concluded through interviews with drivers, mechanics, team owners and executives. I suppose the target audience is young adults to adults (18+) due to the brutal scenes, and specifically, motorsports enthusiasts. The races are represented as harsh on one side, yet thrilling, whereas the drivers are represented as courageous and emotive. I like how this series would realistically display both sides of F1 - the hardships and victories.

Documentary 4 - Making a Murderer (2018) (S1:E1)

This expository true-crime documentary can be ensured by the presence of a "criminal", lawyers, sheriffs, police, and interview footage. Young adults and adults above 18, especially crime enthusiasts would be the target audience. In this case, the sheriffs are portrayed negatively since they were the ones who got Steven Avery (the "criminal") sentenced to 18 years in prison. This docuseries perhaps needs some background on how the sheriff caught Steven, and why it was him, along with the timeline of events.

Documentary 5 - Life in a Day (2020)

This would be a poetic and observational documentary, a lifestyle documentary due to the sentimental episodes, such as birth, and parenthood. Most of the footage is handheld and taken through mobile phones as the concept is having to send a video from a certain day, which gives the documentary and the audience a realistic sensation of living each one of their lives, and going through the events with them as they are being presented. The general population above 18/25 are targeted due to mature contents. Women/mothers are represented as brave with the sight of birth footage, along with a positive representation of events, whether they be inspirational, heartwarming, hopeful, or lively. I enjoyed this docuseries as it presents how different everyone's lives are on a certain day of the year around the globe, and educates the audience on different cultures people in the videos are implementing.

Documentary 6 - Gordon Ramsay Uncharted (2021) (S1:E2)

This would be a travel documentary seen via drone shots, long shots, and establishing shots as Gordon Ramsay experiences West Sumatra's culture and cuisine. The general population is targeted in this docuseries to perhaps educate us on Indonesian culture. West Sumatra is represented positively by Ramsay's excitement and amazement at traditional dishes and their traditions. I like how it offers an authentic and accurate aspect of the location, for instance, work-life (man labour) in Sumatra and its festive culture.

Documentary 7 - Inside the Mind of a Cat (2022)

 

This would be an observational documentary as connotated by the appearance of a cat physiologist observing and explaining on cat's social behaviours and their species, where cats are smart and curious animals. Moreover, this documentary introduces the audience to cats' physiques, such as their elongated spine that allows them to jump - as stated - as high as cheetahs. The general population is targeted in this as some may be interested in cats' physiology and some may simply want to broaden their knowledge on the most successful animals to walk on earth. Cats, here, are represented positively as being intelligent, such that makes people want to adopt cats as home pets to train, as their behaviours are somehow unique. To add, slow motions and close-ups of cats jumping and doing trained activities are used along with voiceovers of the physiologist on their behaviours to further enhance the explanations on, for example, why they are able to leap so high. I like how this documentary offers an educational purpose to the audience and to still perceive cats positively by taking care of them, as well as training them.

Self Reflection: This research helped me and my group in achieving a gist of typical conventions in documentaries, and especially mockumentaries. It also assisted us with coming up with introducing the characters through the interviews, and what documentary type it would be (participatory - interviewer's questions appear in the final text). In addition, researching and analysing media texts (documentaries) aid our knowledge in utilising media elements, such as mise-en-scene, camera shots, angles, and movements, editing techniques, and sounds.