A mockumentary is a film or TV program that 'looks' and 'sounds' like a documentary, but is not factual, not truthful - it is closer, in essence, to parody in that it draws attention to - and makes fun of - the codes and conventions of documentary.
Hey, slow down... Firstly, what's a documentary?
A documentary is a film that attempts, in some way, to record or document reality. Documentaries may focus on events that have already happened (eg: September 11) or perhaps on something that is happening in the present day (eg: the perils of teenage drinking). Even though the scenes in a 'doco' are carefully chosen and arranged, a documentary is not scripted, and the people in a documentary film are not actors.
Codes & conventions of 'documentary' genre...
They include:
* the use of a narrator (either a presenter who appears on-screen, or an unseen voice-over person)
* showing 'real' footage of actual events unfolding
* re-enactments of events that have already taken place
* excerpts of news clippings, archival documents or photographs
* interviews with apparent 'experts' or 'eyewitnesses'
* audio/video samples (eg: surveillance camera footage, extracts from news broadcasts or radio interviews)
A mock-documentary 'works' because we, as the audience, understand the genre, we know how these codes and conventions operate in delivering the information that a documentary film seeks to uncover.
Odd...
When we view media texts that look and sound 'real', we tend to naturally believe them. We're conditioned to trust that current affairs host, we rely on the reports The Courier Mail brings us, we're supposed to just accept as fact the stories we find on the web. (Hmm, can you see how naive we've been?) Oddly though, because a mockumentary shows how easily the conventions of documentary can be faked and fudged to reveal a totally different reality, it reminds us of the dangers of placing so much faith in documentary reporting.
However, many mock-documentaries are not interested in trying to 'raise our consciousness' in relation to documentary, or in forcing us to think more deeply about how we interpet different forms of media. Many mockumentaries seek to create humour simply by using the documentary as the 'straight man' in a comedy double-act. They make an absurd subject funnier by taking an apparently rational and sober perspective on it.
Easy target...
Documentaries may be considered easy targets to lampoon or parody due to the typically serious, straight-faced and overly earnest nature of their presentational style.
The term itself - mockumentary - didn't even exist until film-maker Rob Reiner unveiled his hilarious and groundbreaking comedy 'This is Spinal Tap' (1984) - a film about a woefully inept British rock band. Many audiences thought what they were watching was entirely real. As rockers, 'Spinal Tap' had obviously passed its prime by the time filming began, but an intrepid interviewer (Reiner) continued to explore the backstage world of the musicians, completely unaware of their rapidly fading fame. Separate, and largely improvised, interviews with the band members slowly reveal the sad truth behind their onstage personas.
Ridiculous, yet credible...
One early mockumentary-style film (in 1957) touchingly explored the work of gentle rural folk harvesting 'spaghetti' from a grove of fictional spaghetti trees. Another short mockumentary demonstrated a miraculous dry-cleaning process in which customers simply walked through a tank of fluid. The footage of users emerging completely dry and clean was actually filmed in reverse. The British comedy pioneers Monty Python were notorious for creating full-length mockumentaries on fictional sports competitions or obscure historical figures.
Exaggeration is the name of the game...
The mockumentary effect is most successful when the structure of traditional documentary is maintained, and, even moreso, exaggerated.
Mockumentary interviews are deliberately tiresome, with the interviewer's reaction shots obviously edited into the sequence at a later date. The camera crew will inevitably film a series of 'behind-the-scene' events that, in reality, should never see the light of day. Things such as an embarrassing conversation, an unexpected arrival, a clumsy mishap, awkward silences and completely self-indulgent or ludicrous interviews.
Warts 'n all...
The documentary style of filming - known as cinema 'verite' (French for true) - is a technique used extensively in mockumentary for comic effect... the film-maker uses a hidden (or at least discreetly positioned) camera to capture those raw, unplanned, truly natural moments of reality.
Chaos ensues...
Another trademark of mockumentary is the ironic juxtaposition of reality and the characters' skewed perceptions of that reality. For instance, the mockumentary voice-over might be describing a peaceful and productive day on the set, but all the while the camera is capturing fist fights, walk-offs and slamming doors in the background. In the world of mockumentary, the characters' interviews and observations rarely agree with the chaotic reality captured by the cameras.
WHAT IS IRONY?
The term 'irony' derives from a Greek word that means “one who dissembles.” There are three different kinds of irony, each of which signals a difference between appearance and reality.
1. Verbal Irony: Verbal irony involves figures of speech, in which what is said is not what is meant. Sarcasm is one kind of verbal irony.
* Sarcasm: In sarcasm, the speaker means the opposite of what is said. Suppose someone walks out the door in the morning, hoping for sunshine, and finding sleet and freezing rain exclaims, “What a great day!” This is sarcasm, and irony results because the opposite of what is literally said is what is actually meant.
2. Dramatic Irony: With dramatic irony, the writer reveals to the viewer information about a character’s situation of which that character is not aware... (ie: we know things he doesn't). A good example of this would be in Summer Heights High - we see Rodney (the friend of the egocentric drama teacher Mr Gregson) from a distance, gazing longingly at Mr G during rehearsals for the school musical. However, Mr G doesn't see this, so he never becomes aware of the admiration Rodney has for him. From this, we're able to gain delicious insight into the true relationships between characters. We can read deeper into the real goings-on at the school.
3. Situational Irony: Situational irony results when, say, a character holds a certain expectation or perception about something, but in the end, the reality turns out to be far different. Consider the David Brent character from the British mockumentary program 'The Office'. Around the workplace, he confidently claims to be a very talented dancer. When he is forced to prove his credentials in the charity dance-off, his dance moves are shown to be laughable and humiliating. In this way, mockumentary characters are revealed to be delusional.
Other Relevant FTV sites:
http://filmpitch.blogspot.com/
http://get-up-and-run.blogspot.com/
http://filmcrewproductionroles.blogspot.com/
http://thefrenchnewwave.blogspot.com/
