DOC ANALYSIS

Here I will be analysing three different documentaries. One interviews people on location and could be seen as sunjective, one is based on an event were the people involved are no longer alive and there are no pictures from the time period, and the last is a mockumentary.

Documentary #1

The documentary I looked at first is about the homelessness problem in north america. It was created in 2019 and all of its information is up to date. 

The organisation that created this documentary is called DW - a German broadcasting service that focuses on creating documentary and telling peoples stories. 

The creators have structured their interviews by talking to people on the streets or inside their own homes. Each person being interviewed is also never in one spot - there always moving around and doing something productive like their job or preparing to eat/go to sleep. By recording them in this way - the interviewees become relatable by seeing them do their day to day things, and it makes the audience even more sympathetic to their situation. The classic stereotype of a homeless person is someone who sits on the streets begging for money - but here we see the majority of homeless people are hardworking and desperate to get out of those living conditions. By filming the interview in a studio - the audience might not feel as connected to these people and some may even deny what the interviewees are saying unless they see it themselves, which they are. If the creators would have filmed in a studio, they may not have been able to speak with some of the people you can see in the documentary - such as the doctors, dentists, landlord, sheriff, volunteers and the man who was getting a haircut in his home. All of those people might not have been accessed if they were not filmed in their homes and workplaces - as some people would be too busy or see it as a waste of time if they only have a few words to say. 

Whether this kind of documentary is objective or subjective, it could go either way. I believe it is subjective, where a documentary is seen as one-sided and based on a persons personal beliefs. I think this because 

Documentary #2

This is also a objective documentary - a film that goes unbiased and relies on facts. 

The creators of this documentary have gone for a very realistic yet unsettling tone throughout. No music, long pauses and creepy background ambience makes the audience feel much sadder and gives them time to think about what their listening to. Most documentaries are dramatised with loud music and constant information being pushed in the audience's face - but for this film, the content hits harder when the creators aren't constantly trying to keep you entertained  - but very uncomfortable.

The most amazing and captivating part about this documentary has to be the way the story is told - through actors reading out letters from the real event. Most other docs would most likely re-create whatever the person was doing when writing the letter or have them do something related to what their saying, but here, as the actors read out the letters written by hopeful doctors who believe their experiments would progress society as we know it - the camera shows us the abandoned and destroyed labs that they used to work in. Forgotten and left to decay. I love this sense of imagery because it makes 

Documentary #3 

The last documentary I watched is called The Majestic Plastic Bag - A Mockumentary. I wanted to listen to a mockumentary because of its unorthodox methods of spreading an interesting story or important message. Here, the purpose of the film is to show people how serious the plastic waste problem is in California and across the world. 

Concerning interviews - this mockumetary doesn't have any. The style this film was trying to pull off was heavily influenced by Animal Planet - a serious documentary where instead of a bunch of biologists and animal experts explaining an animals habitat or their behaviour, they show it to you. Doing this allows the audience to see for themselves how serious the plastic problem is. You can see how far the plastic can go once it's out of your hands, you can see how much of it is in our cities and ocean - but most importantly, you see that no one around the plastic bag thinks about picking it up and throwing it away (apart from the people who are payed to). By showing the neglect that we have developed towards this crisis, people are exposed to the truth that this situation could have been easily solved (and still could be) if we got involved and took the time to properly dispose of our things.