Wednesday, November 18, 2015

What A Mockumentary Really Is

By Mattie Knight


In a nutshell, mockumentaries are actually fictional documentaries that would mock a certain issue or a certain event. A mockumentary is actually a parody that would make use of a fictional setting and characters to depict an existing issue. These types of shows are actually quite popular because they would offer viewers a fresh perspective on certain issues unlike what regular documentaries would usually show.

Now there are usually two kinds of mockumentaries that one may be able to watch on television. The two types of mockumentaries are the comedy type as well as the drama ones. These are the two genres that one would usually see if he would watch these kinds of documentaries on television.

Now the first one, which is the comedic one, is the more common as as it is actually the more popular one because it shows real events in a very funny light that is somewhat ironic. Now the presentation would appear to be quite serious in nature but there would be a lot of funny punchlines and dialogues that would really make people laugh out loud. Now to add to the effect, there are not any laugh tracks which would make the documentary even more real that it is supposed to be.

The second type which is the drama type is actually a more serious one that would usually try to depict some sort of message. This would also show a certain issue or a story of a person with a lot of dramatization just like a movie except that it is presented to look like it is real. Of course the setting, characters, and story plot are all fictional.

Now exactly like in documentaries, these mockumentaries would also have a specific time line that they would follow when showing the events of the film. The same would go for the mockumentaries that would be showcasing the life of a person and the events in his life. There is a sequence that should be followed so that it will look as realistic as possible.

Now just to give a brief background, these types of films were only really popular during the year 1980 because of Rob Reiner. Now Rob Reiner was the director of the film This is Spinal Tap which he referred to as a mock documentary when he was interviewed. Due to this, the term stayed and then became an official term for parody documentaries.

In the comedy genre of mockumentaries, one of the most popular ones would be Borat, Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan. Other than that, there would also be Bruno which is an extremely funny documentary about a gay man who is out of the closet. Of course there are still many more than one can find as well.

In the drama section, there would be none other than the popular Blair Witch Project which is a horror documentary. After that, many others followed like the The Last Exorcism and Paranormal Activity. There would also be action themed films like Cloverfield and Into the Storm.




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