Bonnie Hartrey

MOCKUMENTARY

A Mockumentary is a television programme or film based on fictional events, which takes the form of a serious documentary in order to create a parody. Ultimately it is a ‘fake documentary’.

WHAT IS A MOCKUMENTARY?

EXAMPLES OF MOCKUMENTARY

A mighty wind: This film is a fictional 2003 American mockumentary comedy-drama film about a folk music reunion where three folk bands reunite for a television performance. it is a memorial concert for a folk music producer Irving Steinbloom. His children set up a concert, which they attempt to feature his three most favourite acts The Folksmen, The New Main Street Singers, and Mitch & Mickey. it has been structured in the form of a mockumentary(documentary) in order to add a comical effect. The mockumentary is a parody of The American Folk Music Revival.

British heavy metal band Spinal Tap attempt an American comeback tour accompanied by a fan who is also a film-maker. The mockumentary, includes performances of Tap's pivotal music and profound lyrics, follows a rock group heading towards crisis, ending in the infamous affair of the eighteen-inch-high Stonehenge stage prop.

EXAMPLE OF MOCKUMENTARY – THIS IS SPINAL TAP

Mockumentaries are an entertaining form of comedy, however they may sometimes have a serious message that they tend to share with their audience. A mockumentary gives an audience a false sense of reality by showing their film in the structure, which is usually used to share factual information. Mockumentaries will usually exaggerate stereotypes in order to mock some peoples views of the world. They are known to mock many different types of culture for example, religion, politics, lifestyle, and pop culture.

WHY ARE MOCKUMENTARIES MADE?

MY MOCKUMENTARY:THE LIFE OF THE RARE HENGROVIAN BOG NEWT

My mockumentary is about a fictional creature and it’s life cycle. I have used a range of documentary techniques including narration, sound effects, voice overs, titles in order to make my mockumentary comical for the audience. I have also included a life cycle for the creature in order to make the mockumentary a similar style to the types of documentaries I would be mocking, for example BBC nature documentaries and David Attenbrough Life On Earth, which are all nature documentaries including the lifestyle and life cycle of animals.