First Practical Task: Making a 'Mockumentary'

Hi everyone!

Last week we filmed in groups the first practical piece of the year!

After learning about documentaries and their codes and conventions, we were given the task to film a 'mockumentary' which lasted about 1 minute.

I hope you enjoy this post!

xx Natalia

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Our Idea:

With my teammates, we decided to attempt to film a spin-off version of "73 Questions with Vogue", as we considered it to be a practical choice to create humour through celebrity stereotypes.

The narrative we chose consisted in a celebrity meeting a famous designer in our programme. Anticipation would be built through the normal procedure of asking a couple of questions with absurd and stereotypical answers (e.g. 'what is your favourite feature' 'my botox'). Then, the newest design in the collection of the designer would be a ridiculous dress made out of a garbage bag, displayed on a skeleton in stead of a mannequin. This contrast would create ironic humour (comedic effect).

In terms of the camera shots and movements, we replicated the long take, tracking shot of the camera following the celebrity towards her destination. We also used continuity editing in the shots of her entering the following room.

For the comedic effect, we used a slow pan upwards to film the skeleton, creating anticipation for the full reveal of the 'dress'. We also used many zoom-ins to create a sense of awkwardness, drawing focus to the tension between the designer and disappointed celebrity.

In terms of the editing and sound, we used the soundtrack of Keeping Up with the Kardashians to add to the atmosphere of celebrity lifestyle 'documentary'. We also introduced a title at the beginning of the video which looked professional, reading "73 Questions with Paris Milton", our comedic celebrity.

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The Final Video:

My Learning Experience:

This task was a great learning experience as we did not have too much time to plan it, and hence it tested and developed my media instinct (choosing the right conventions almost intuitively).

Perhaps the most interesting feature of this task, which constituted the biggest challenge and learning experience, was making a parody of a documentary instead of a real one. That way, we had to know the key features of a documentary-style- such as interviews, and twist them through stereotypical scenarios which would create humour.

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