The documentary begins with an establishing long shot of the prison - San Quentin. This is the most famous prison in America.
There is then a 'snip-it' shown of a part of an interview at the opening, to intrigue and captivate the audience without revealing too much of the investigation. It talks about a man who has been sentenced to live in prison which causes the question: "what does a man have to do to get 500 years in prison?" to be raised. The answer to this however, is not quite revealed until later (3/4) into the documentary.
The BBC logo appears, which is like a stamp of quality, and in turn makes the documentary look legitimate. This is because it appears to be an acomplished programme which has not been made by intermediates.
There is a montage of prisoners, while louis is watching, with a voice over to introduce documentary. There is relatively pleasant music which is soft and gentle playing alongside the montage, this juxtaposes what we see on screen as it is an unexpected kind of music which is contrapuntal to what we see on screen.
The cut to the actual title does not appear until just over a minute in, it is an animated title.
Danger is shown to be apparrent within first few minutes in which alarms the audience by showing the possibility that the documenter could, potentially be killed or seriously injured in such an environment. A handheld camera is used to show reality and a sense of uneasiness. If dangerous prisoners are around, time would not be apparent to allow equipment to be put away, this furthers the reality that they are in a highly dangerous environment.
There is a fade to black transitioning which shows the passing of time and gives the idea that it is a new day. This shows that the documentary had been somewhat time consuming to film and did not merely happen over a number of hours.
Wednesday, 25 April 2012
Task 2 - Research into Documentary - A Very British Gangster
'A Very British Gangster' - directed by Donal Macintyre.
It is about one Manchester's most notorious gangsters. The documentary begins following the codes and conventions of an actual film, with the use of an establishing master shot of a city scape at night in a working class area. There is the noise of a train at the beginning of the documentary, which shows that the setting is urban. With the use of street gang music - Hip-Hop represents the urban nature and criminality within Britain.
The train noise is used a sound bridge, while the titles fade in and out.
The gangsters are shown at a low angle which gives perspective of the surroundings and gives the gangsters authority as they are seemingly positioned higher than the audience who are watching. The gangster standing in the middle is the 'main' guy, with is support men at his side, however it is clear that he is the leader because he is in the main focus. They are all dressed in suits, which is taken from the traditional italian/american gangster style, but not as 'slick' or posh-looking because they in a lower-class area than those gangsters in other countries.
The fourth wall is broken as the gangsters talk to the camera, addressing the audience. This moves away from the idea that what we are viewing is like a film, because this is a convention of documentaries because it makes the on-screen image look realistic. The gangster culture is romanticised as slow motion is used.
When the main gangster is talking, there is a cut away to his hands, showing his jewellry which emphasises his wealth. However, this doesnt appear to be an aspect of the working class, or even of a sophisticated person as the jewellery looks somewhat 'over the top' as it is very 'blingy'. This does show prosperity however. There are cuts to a close ups of his face showing his emotion and expression, which is sincerity and shows he is thinking. He appears to be a bit of a psycho as he talks openly about someone being decapitated, but shows no signs of compassion whatsoever.
The use of the handheld camera shows realism, the documentary is supposed to be like a 'fly on the wall' view.
A crane shot is used within the documentary which is unconvential because it takes a great deal of preperation, but gives the documentary a professional look, similar to a film, making it look legitimate.
The location of a barber shop is used, which part of the iconography of gangster history.
Within the documentary, it does not appear to be real time, the cuts used suggest a jump in time
The main gangster who is whistling is a juxtaposition to the idea of a violent man appearing to be cheerful.
There is a montage of black and white images, they are grainy which resembles undercover cctv surveillance footage. It also looks like newspaper pictures, this montage idea is taken from Quinten Taranteno's Pulp Fiction film. This furthers the idea of this documentary appearing to be like a proper film as opposed to a 'normal' documentary. Many people may associate traditional documentaries with being boring, perhaps the directors intention for this particular documentary is to create excitement and professionalism as it doesn't appear to have been rushed.
The gangsters appear to be enjoying being filmed perhaps because this gives them kudos, identity and respect within their community.
There is a transition effect which show black and white stills turning into colour.
The use of a handheld camera shows how things are happening in reality as opposed to using a tri-pod. Because of the nature of gangsters, the cameraperson cannot afford to have full on camera equipment because if the time comes where they need to run away, they would not have time to dismount and carry the equipment.
Within the documetary, it is shown to be real, as the gangsters have an argument, which is not seemingly scripted, thus reinforcing the sense of verisimilitude.
Oasis music is used which is typically associated with the manchester music scene
Sunny weather and happy music is a juxtaposing idea to gangster culture that is being documented
It is about one Manchester's most notorious gangsters. The documentary begins following the codes and conventions of an actual film, with the use of an establishing master shot of a city scape at night in a working class area. There is the noise of a train at the beginning of the documentary, which shows that the setting is urban. With the use of street gang music - Hip-Hop represents the urban nature and criminality within Britain.
The train noise is used a sound bridge, while the titles fade in and out.
The gangsters are shown at a low angle which gives perspective of the surroundings and gives the gangsters authority as they are seemingly positioned higher than the audience who are watching. The gangster standing in the middle is the 'main' guy, with is support men at his side, however it is clear that he is the leader because he is in the main focus. They are all dressed in suits, which is taken from the traditional italian/american gangster style, but not as 'slick' or posh-looking because they in a lower-class area than those gangsters in other countries.
The fourth wall is broken as the gangsters talk to the camera, addressing the audience. This moves away from the idea that what we are viewing is like a film, because this is a convention of documentaries because it makes the on-screen image look realistic. The gangster culture is romanticised as slow motion is used.
When the main gangster is talking, there is a cut away to his hands, showing his jewellry which emphasises his wealth. However, this doesnt appear to be an aspect of the working class, or even of a sophisticated person as the jewellery looks somewhat 'over the top' as it is very 'blingy'. This does show prosperity however. There are cuts to a close ups of his face showing his emotion and expression, which is sincerity and shows he is thinking. He appears to be a bit of a psycho as he talks openly about someone being decapitated, but shows no signs of compassion whatsoever.
The use of the handheld camera shows realism, the documentary is supposed to be like a 'fly on the wall' view.
A crane shot is used within the documentary which is unconvential because it takes a great deal of preperation, but gives the documentary a professional look, similar to a film, making it look legitimate.
The location of a barber shop is used, which part of the iconography of gangster history.
Within the documentary, it does not appear to be real time, the cuts used suggest a jump in time
The main gangster who is whistling is a juxtaposition to the idea of a violent man appearing to be cheerful.
There is a montage of black and white images, they are grainy which resembles undercover cctv surveillance footage. It also looks like newspaper pictures, this montage idea is taken from Quinten Taranteno's Pulp Fiction film. This furthers the idea of this documentary appearing to be like a proper film as opposed to a 'normal' documentary. Many people may associate traditional documentaries with being boring, perhaps the directors intention for this particular documentary is to create excitement and professionalism as it doesn't appear to have been rushed.
The gangsters appear to be enjoying being filmed perhaps because this gives them kudos, identity and respect within their community.
There is a transition effect which show black and white stills turning into colour.
The use of a handheld camera shows how things are happening in reality as opposed to using a tri-pod. Because of the nature of gangsters, the cameraperson cannot afford to have full on camera equipment because if the time comes where they need to run away, they would not have time to dismount and carry the equipment.
Within the documetary, it is shown to be real, as the gangsters have an argument, which is not seemingly scripted, thus reinforcing the sense of verisimilitude.
Oasis music is used which is typically associated with the manchester music scene
Sunny weather and happy music is a juxtaposing idea to gangster culture that is being documented
Monday, 23 April 2012
Task 1 - Research into Codes and Conventions
TV Documentary
What is a documentary film?
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record. A 'documentary film' was originally shot on film stock — the only medium available — but now includes video and digital productions that can be either direct-to-video, made as a television program or released for screening in cinemas. "Documentary" has been described as a "filmmaking practice, a cinematic tradition, and mode of audience reception" that is continually evolving and is without clear boundaries. (Wikipedia)
GPO - General Post Office film devision to explain and promote work of the post office to the nation.
John Grierson 1933 general director of GPO unit. Father of documentary film. Established conventions of documentary film
Analyse the codes and conventions of a documentary film. Comment on following:
1. what tv channel it is broadcast on
2. what is the title of the documentary?
3. what type of documentary it is:
historical - rise and fall of egyptian empire
biographical - the life of sir stanley matthews
investigative - the truth behind the disappearance of madeline mcann
artistic - the work of van gough
wildlife - the anatomy of the blue whale
political - the new labour years
drama documentaries - margaret thatcher
reality tv - the kardashians
celebrity - david beckhams new tattoo
scripted reality - the only way is essex
4. what style of documentary is it?:
narrative structure - linear/non
editing - fast/slow/fades/dissolves/superimposing
voice-overs - narration/tone/register/mode of address
archive footage - type/style/place/time-period
graphics - pie charts/images
text - captions/subtitles/banners
5. what is the subject matter / content of the documentary?
6. what are the messages and meanings behind the documentary? - what is it trying to communicate to the audience?
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/behind-bars/
What is a documentary film?
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record. A 'documentary film' was originally shot on film stock — the only medium available — but now includes video and digital productions that can be either direct-to-video, made as a television program or released for screening in cinemas. "Documentary" has been described as a "filmmaking practice, a cinematic tradition, and mode of audience reception" that is continually evolving and is without clear boundaries. (Wikipedia)
GPO - General Post Office film devision to explain and promote work of the post office to the nation.
John Grierson 1933 general director of GPO unit. Father of documentary film. Established conventions of documentary film
Analyse the codes and conventions of a documentary film. Comment on following:
1. what tv channel it is broadcast on
2. what is the title of the documentary?
3. what type of documentary it is:
historical - rise and fall of egyptian empire
biographical - the life of sir stanley matthews
investigative - the truth behind the disappearance of madeline mcann
artistic - the work of van gough
wildlife - the anatomy of the blue whale
political - the new labour years
drama documentaries - margaret thatcher
reality tv - the kardashians
celebrity - david beckhams new tattoo
scripted reality - the only way is essex
4. what style of documentary is it?:
narrative structure - linear/non
editing - fast/slow/fades/dissolves/superimposing
voice-overs - narration/tone/register/mode of address
archive footage - type/style/place/time-period
graphics - pie charts/images
text - captions/subtitles/banners
5. what is the subject matter / content of the documentary?
6. what are the messages and meanings behind the documentary? - what is it trying to communicate to the audience?
http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/behind-bars/
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