Comparing the Conventions in a Mockumentary and Documentary

Interview vs. Narrative Convention:

One of the conventions used in the mockumentary “Summer Heights High” is the interview convention. This convention puts the characters more in their role as school kids due to the fact that kids wouldn’t necessarily know how to act in front of a camera. Therefore, the interview convention gives Jonah and his gang the prompts they need as being ‘school kids’. This makes the audience feel as if the interview shots are real, more believable and less rehearsed.

However, in the documentary “The Tribe” the narrative convention has been used instead. This shows that the narrator is an expert who knows what he’s talking about and he doesn’t need to be prompted, unlike Jonah and his gang. This convention makes the audience feel as if they are having an actual conversation with the narrator but the narrator is the one disclosing the information; they are just the listeners.

Quality of footage:

A second convention used in the mockumentary “Summer Heights High” is the quality of footage. In the mockumentary the camera is shaky to create the effect of the documentary and it also shows that the footage was low quality. This is because it shows that it has been shot and taken right there and then. This makes the audience feel as if the mockumentary is actually real because the camera is constantly switching from one place to the next, in order to catch every ounce of information.

On the other hand, in the documentary “The Tribe” the camera was a mixture of both slightly shaky and still. This shows that the footage was high quality but the camera had to be moved quickly in order to catch all of the action. This is because each action only happened once so it had to be caught as soon as possible in order to give the audience as much information as possible. This makes the audience feel satisfied because they are getting a lot out of the documentary.

Voice overs:

A third convention used in the mockumentary “Summer Heights High” is voice overs. However, they did not necessarily have voice overs because they used an interview convention because they had to fit into their role as school kids. School kids wouldn’t really know how to talk to the audience about a specific subject without prompts, even if they were “experts” in it because they are not professionals. This would make the audience of teenagers aged 15-21 feel more in touch with Jonah and his gang because they aren’t pretending to be smarter than they actually are.

 

On the other hand, in the documentary “Life” a voice over is used. The narrator’s voice is dramatic and exaggerated in order to create suspense. This together with the fact that all the sounds were exaggerated and the documentary is HD will make the viewer want to watch the documentary. This is because if the narrator is creating suspense, it means that “Life” has got to be good as the producers went to this extent to create such a dramatic trailer.

Quality of Filming:

A fourth convention used in the mockumentary “Summer Heights High” is the quality of filming. The filming was quite poor which suggested that they used a cheap camera because the mockumentary was not filmed in HD. This suggests that the makers of this mockumentary were quite tight on budget if they couldn’t film using the appropriate equipment. It also makes the mockumentary seem a little too exaggerated in their attempt to make it look like an actual documentary by making their filming look like they filmed it straight away without editing it.

Conversely, in the documentary “The Tribe”, the filming is in high quality which suggests that the producers had enough money to spend on the latest cameras in order to get the best possible footage. This means that even though they were filming on the spot, they still managed to get fantastic footage which shows that they are professionals who are experienced in making documentaries, so they know how to collect the appropriate footage.

Shot type and variety:

A fifth convention used in the mockumentary “Summer Heights High” is shot type and variety. In the mockumentary, some of the shot types used are close up shots, wide angle shots and extreme long shots. The close up shot is used to show extra detail so that the viewer won’t feel left out. This is because the viewer will want to know what is happening in the mockumentary as they want to be a part of it. The wide angle shot is used to show what’s going on around the main subjects (Jonah and his gang), which means that the viewer can have a sense of being there. The extreme long shot is used to show as much of the surroundings as possible so the viewer can see what is going on in the background.

Similarly, in the documentary “The Tribe”, some of the shots used are close up shots, wide angle shots and extreme close up shots. Like in the mockumentary, the CU shot is used to show detail so that the viewers don’t miss a thing. The wide angle shot is used to show the surroundings so that the viewer can see what is going on around the main subjects (Bruce Parry and the 3 members of the tribe). The extreme CU shot is used to show extra detail, like when you were seeing the bee up close.

Observation shot:

A sixth convention used in the mockumentary “Summer Heights High” is observation shot. This is linked to shot types because the amount of footage the viewer observes differs depending on the shot type. In the mockumentary, we sometimes see things from Jonah’s perspective, which means that we actually get to be a part of the mockumentary. This gives viewers a chance to be a part of the mockumentary as they are not just viewing things from afar; they are getting a real glimpse of life as Jonah.

Conversely, in the documentary “The Tribe”, the most frequently used shots were extreme CU shots. This means that viewers can see every tiny detail, so they won’t miss out on any information; they will be thoroughly engaged in the documentary.