Techniques used in Documentaries...

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As mentioned earlier there are many different types of documentaries that appeal to a wide demograpgic. For instance, poetic style documentaries use the subject and show the documentary in a story like way. There may be a series of interviews held and it would be done with a wide range of camera angles and would look very professional.

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Observarional documentaries on the other hand are slightly different. The camera observes and focuses on the targeted person or object and is often used with a handheld camera to keep the audience engaged and make them feel part of the action.

Many documentaries use something known as the "voice of god". This is whereby an unseen narrator is used througout the documentary, explaining and summerising what's happening.

Mockumentaries

A mockumentary, otherwise known as a "mock documentary" is another style of a documentary. It is ficticious film or television that is shown as a documentary. It is portrayed to the audience in a comical way, and is mocking the storyline of the film, this is mostly to engage the audience and to attract a new target audience. Mockumentaries usually follow and base themselves around current affairs in the media.

Here are some examples of contemporary mockumentaries that are well established:

Firstly, there is an award winning TV mockumentary called "The Office". This is a show which exaggerates everyday life, working in the office and is protrayed in a very humerous way. A clip from the offics is shown below:

Another example of a mockumentary would be the 2006 mocumentary comedy film, Borat. This is besed on a man from Kazikstan who travels to America alongside a companion to see what the country is like. A trailer of this is found below..