Mission Statement

Binge Britain: Brighton will be aired on a Tuesday on BBC THREE at 9pm. The reason why we are airing are documentary mid week is because are target audience, 16+, are known to be out at the weekends, and this would reduce are potential audience.

Binge Britain: Brighton will be broadcasted on BBC THREE because from our research similar documentaries have been aired on this channel and at similar times to ours. Another reason why we have chosen to broadcast our documentary on this channel is because BBC offer a catch up feature online called BBC IPLAYER. This will allow us to broadcast to a larger audience as they can watch it at a later date if missed on TV.

The reason why we are showing our documentary after the watershed is because it allows us to show more explicit/adult content. This will allow our documentary to be more shocking, giving it a greater impact on the audience.

Binge Britain: Brighton’s purpose is to demonstrate how alcohol affects more than just the consumer. This will involve observing interviews with young people that have abused alcohol, a PCSO and a nurse to see how alcohol has a damaging effect on society.

We will be using cameras, a tripod and editing software to create our documentary.

Questionnaire Results

Here is a sample of my questionnaire results. Please click image to enlarge

Questionnaire

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Initial Ideas

Haunted House

The True Story

The Facts:

The haunted attraction industry generates roughly 300 million pounds in revenue and the amusement park industry another 150 to 200 million pounds.

The industry of haunted houses supports hundreds of other businesses.

Some haunted houses charge as much as £50 while most average around £25 per event.

Possible investigation:

• Archive footage
• Interview with paranormal experts
• Investigate derelict hospice’s and hospitals

Binge Drinking

Does binge drinking have a negative effect on society?

The Facts:

Drinking amongst teenagers is on the up, and binge drinking is linked to anti-social behaviour and the use of other drugs. A recent survey revealed that 27% of 15-16 year olds have had more than three binges in the last month. The survey also revealed that 9% of boys and girls aged between 11-12 years described themselves as regular drinkers.

Possible investigation:

• Archive footage
• Interview with police to see how alcohol effects the society
• Does drug use increase when binge drinking occurs
• Information on alcohol units
• Interview with alcohol councillor
• Does the cheapness of alcohol influence teenagers to drink?

Meow:  The Deadly High

Should meow be made illegal in the UK?

The Facts:

Meow is sold as plant food or pond cleaner on the internet and is described as not being for human consumption.

It was made illegal in several countries due to growing evidence of health risks, including a reported cause of death.

Meow produces euphoria, alertness, talkativeness and feelings of empathy, but can also cause anxiety and paranoid states and risks over stimulating the heart and circulation.

Possible Investigation:

• Interview with experts to find out the long term effects of the drug
• Talk to users of the drug to find out why they take it
• Find out how easy it is to purchase on the internet
• Interview with the police to find out their views on the drug

Michael Moore Essay

Michael Moore Documentaries:

·         Often open with humour

·         Uses his voice to narrate

·         Conflict of narration

·         Archive footage

·         CCTV footage

·         Focuses on his beliefs and opinions

Essay Question:

‘Michael Moore’s documentaries have brought the genre into the mainstream and are innovative in their style. Discuss.'

The genres of Michael Moore’s documentaries are often investigative and follow a similar structure. He is always the narrator and his films quickly rely on his voice over for additional information. He asks the audience rhetorical questions, instantaneously followed with his own opinions, which further enforces the ‘God’ like status of Michael Moore within his own film. The use of archive footage is always prominent in his documentaries and they are often heavily discussion based using interviews to portray two sides of an argument.

The investigative documentary is a genre that illustrates and investigates a real life subject using facts and archive footage to show the audience ‘first hand’ the point they are trying to make. Michael Moore’s investigative documentaries, like many others, attempt to discover the truth, often regarding political, medical and media issues.

I have seen two of Michael Moore’s documentaries; the first was ‘Bowling for Columbine’, a film about a high school massacre and other acts of violence, mainly with guns. The film’s title comes from the story of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, the two students responsible for the Columbine High School massacre, who attended a school bowling class before they committed the attack at the school.

In Moore’s documentary he engages in discussions with various people such as South Park creator Matt Stone, National Rifle Association’s then-president Charlton Heston and musician Marilyn Manson as well as members of the school. He tries to find the truth behind why the Columbine massacre occurred and why the United States has such a high violent crime rate, compared with other countries such as Canada and The United Kingdom.

The second documentary I watch was Fahrenheit 9/11. The film takes a critical look at George Bush and the war on terrorism, and in particularly the coverage on American news.

This documentary again has a discussion-based theme with several conspiracy theories being argued. The documentary speaks to those who believe the American Government allowed or helped the attacks on the world trade centre and the pentagon. Michael Moore travels across the United States to investigate, speaking eye to eye with witnesses and tries to establish the truth.

Bowling for columbine won numerous awards, including Academy Award for best documentary feature and a special 55th anniversary prize at the Cannes film festival. Fahrenheit 9/11 was controversial but debuted at the 2004 Cannes film festival and received a 20-minute standing ovation, which was the longest in the festivals history.

The fact that Michael Moore’s documentaries have been so successful brings them into the mainstream. They have been acknowledged by many and so they become more popular. The documentary genre is not a popular genre but Michaels Moore’s have become an exception, as they are innovative and unique in their style. The documentaries are styled differently to many investigative types with the use of humour prominent throughout. Michael Moore also uses humour to prove his point/opinion on subjects/people. He does this using editing and manipulation of footage to work in his favour and is often biased towards his point of view. Moore has often been criticised for appearing too much in his documentaries making the focus on him rather than the subject being investigated. His use of archive footage is extremely effective. Many scenes of archive footage go on for quite a while, for instance the blank screen and the 911 calls in Fahrenheit 9/11 and the CCTV footage and emergency calls played over the top in bowling for columbine. These scenes where unusually long but worked effectively as they allowed emotional interaction between the audience and what was on the screen. These scenes really prolonged the agony, helping us to engage with the people affected.

Watching Documentaries

Documentary name:
Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents- Ayia Napa

Notes:
Quick editing
Narrative; sometimes humerus and mocking
Fly on the wall
Expository
Split screen
Talking heads
Long, establishing shots

About the documentary:
Sun, Sex and Suspicious Parents is a fly on the wall documentary that follows groups of teenagers on their first holiday abroad without their parents. However,  their parents secretly keep tabs on their teenage offspring's summer holidays following them abroad for up to a week. 


Throughout the programme, parents get extremely close to their sons/daughters whilst being hidden away watching their every move on video screens. They are often only metres away in stockrooms of nightclubs or in minivans following their children.

Documentary Modes

Expository:
The purpose of the expository documentary is to inform and educate the audience about a subject. Material often includes original and archival footage, with the camera and crew normally visible to the audience. The material is tightly scripted and often accompanied by a voice-over narration, normally by an expert or actor.


Observational:
Since the 1960s lightweight film and video cameras have enabled filmmakers to record people in their natural environment with a minimum of fuss. This approach aims for a greater degree of naturalness as camera and crew take a back seat.


Fly-On-The-Wall:
An extension of the observational mode, fly-on-the-wall aims to blend into the background as the subjects go about their daily lives. Filming may go on over a prolonged period. The aim is to give the audience unmediated access to the subject.


Interactive/Reflective:
In this mode the filmmakers presence is fully acknowledged, with the filmmaker often both author and character in his or her movie, often appearing in shot and interacting with other people in the film or programme. The film might offer suprises, play with conventions or aim to provoke reactions from subjects and the audience.


Mockumentary:
Fictional films which parody the forms and conventions of documentary, often for humorous effect.