AS Codes and Conventions

Before filming our documentary, we found that it would be worthwhile to study other successful documentaries in order to gain codes and conventions from them. This would mean that if we based our documentary on these 'rules' that our film would look like it was part of the documentary genre.

We watched a documentary made on the blockbuster hit by Spielberg; Jaws. This documentary showed those who had worked on the film and those who had watched the film. By showing the interviewer out of shot, and the interviewee as the centre of attention chatting, this connoted to the audience that the interviewee was chatting to them about the film, using anecdotes and memories in order to give the viewer a broader knowledge of the hit film.

Cutaways of the film were also used in places, to illustrate and back up what the participants in the documentary were saying. This not only meant that the audience's attention was kept, but it also added a much needed variation to the documentary; people are unlikely to watch people talking for an hour long, so clips and other information is needed to make the documentary more exciting.

We also watched a documentary based on The Simpsons, for it's 20 year anniversary. As a viewer, this interested me a lot, as I would describe myself as an avid fan of the simpsons. This documentary used a different format, showing the interviewer in the documentary in more of a conversation format. This meant that the audience felt like they were there, eavesdropping and listening in to the conversation, which suited the younger target audience of the documentary.

The Simpsons documentary also included a lot of cutaways and nods to gags which fans of the popular series would know. This intensified the documentary and made it more involved with the actual series. This documentary also followed the interviewer on a journey to people involved in the making and viewing of the simpsons; by following this, it felt as if we, as viewers were also on the journey. Even the title; 'The Simpsons 20th Anniversary in 3d on ice' conveyed its suitability to a younger and less mature audience who would be experienced with in series jokes.