Mockumentary

Deconstruction:
Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping
Introduction

The film of Popstar Never stop Never Stopping is a mockumentary of a popstar trying to stay
relevant in today's world of music. There are many familiar conventions used from
mockumentaries such as the interview sections, narrator, camera crew and tracking shots. This
is to create a realistic feel to the documentary and it also adds humour too if it comes across
as realistic. The way in which the film shows humour is different to other films/ tv shows as it
uses peoples reactions and its songs made by the main character to make the audience laugh.
The songs usually contain some sort of humour such as rude jokes or just outrageous dance
moves that make the film funny. However the characters stay in the roles and still act serious
which adds to the whole comedic effect.
These mid shots are commonly used throughout the film as it shows a
documentary feel as it contains many interviews of the characters within so
they can talk about their experiences to either the interviewee or the camera.
This type of shot can also contain zooms and other subtle camera movements
to keep the viewer invested.
There are also many shots used like this one where the character being
interviewed is talking about a certain subject and it will cut away to what they
are talking about which is useful for the audience as it allows them to be fully
drawn in by what the person is saying. This can also add humour as the past
event could be different to what the character is describing for added laughter.
This shot shows a close up of someone elses interview with the bit of text
introducing the character. This is something id like to use within my production
too as it can create a professional vibe to the documentary. The character here
is also used for humour as they are saying positive things about the main band
in this film and in reality they are awful.
This shot is effective as the main character of the documentary is walking
round his house talking to the camera crew. There are many tracking shots of
him walking around and showing the crew his valuables and collections which
is something id also like to use in my production as the manager or player of
the team could walk around as the camera man follows.
This mid shot is also used often, usually to show a character's facial
expression when reacting to something that has either just happened or just
about to happen on screen. This type of shot is effective as it allows the
audience to see what the character is feeling and doing which can also be
effective for the humour of mockumentary.
This mid shot shows off the red carpet event which the main characters
attend and the cameraman is in the crowd which gives the mockumentary a
realistic feel which adds to the humour of the film as the characters act serious
when in reality the film is a big joke.
This shot is effective as the camera pans to one of the characters to show his
expression and reaction to something that has just happened, shots like these
are also commonly followed up with a zoom and maybe even the character
acknowledging the camera man and keeping the same expression.
Conclusion

This film has given me many ideas that i could incorporate and use in my
mockumentary production as i can use similar shots and themes that are used
here such as the interviews and the style of humour which is slapstick but the
characters stay serious. The way in which the camera crew are also there
filming events that take place is also something id like to use within my
production as it creates a sense of realism and its a key convention of a
documentary.