Carl Analysis
How is it structured?
The film opens with some white text on a black screen:
This text helps to set the context of the film and explain the setting to the viewer. As our film is only five minutes long and we have a lot to explain to the viewer, a tool like this may come in helpful in order to quickly and effectively set the scene, whilst keeping in line with the conventions of mockumentaries.
To further establish the setting a range of shots of a window and an unmade bed are shown before the credits, which lead into shots of a computer and a desk on top of which are the credits and the title of the film in a typewriter font, accompanied by the sounds of typing.
I think that these typing sounds will work well with our film also, as a precursor to shots we plan to have of ladies in a dating agency, like the Undateables.
The contrast of the red font against a black and white background also works well as it stands out, yet is still simple with no capitalisation on the title and the typewriter font. This makes the movie seem very amateur, which is a common theme running throughout mockumentaries and can often add to the type of humour involved in the film.
The remainder of the film is structured as the voiceover of the dog and shots alternating between his daily life and shots of him sitting infront of the camera, interview style.
This is how we are currently planning to structure our introduction, using a range of narration and candid shots mixed with mid shots of the characters in an interview style, which is typical of both documentaries and mockumentaries.
Sound
The music in the film is very simple, as to not take away from the humour going on and to give the feel of an amateur film, however it is still quite quirky and adds to the sense of humour and irony in the film, whilst sound effects such as typing and a clock ticking further this.
The voiceover is common to almost every other mockumentary that I have seen and will definitely play a key role in our movie. In order to explain what is going on in our movie in such a short amount of time, it will be necessary that we layer voiceovers coming from individual interviews with shots of what is going on in the storyline itself, much like Carl.
In terms of the script, the voiceover is the only thing spoken in the film. The way in which the main character says funny and ironic lines in such a monotone and serious voice is exactly what we are aiming for in our film.
Mise-en-scene
In Carl, the fact that the actor is going through a tough time is depicted a lot through mise-en-scene with the use of simplistic shots in black and white:
Whilst our film will use colour, shots like this will be effective to set the scene for the character and to show their home life, which can show a lot about the situation that they are in.
This is repeated throughout the film, with close up shots of the dog driving, sitting down and even making coffee as he speaks about his struggles. This is very common to many mockumentaries and is definitely an element we should consider incorporating.
Attitudes to Characters/Setting/Theme
The general attitude towards the sole character in this film is portrayed using deadpan and absurd humour. The film uses the codes and conventions of a normal documentary (single camera set-up, mostly close ups, hand-held camera and minimal graphics), combined with black and white and pathetic fallacy (the rain), which creates what would normally be a completely serious and sombre attitude towards the main character and the theme. However, when combined with the subject matter and the fact that the main character is a dog, this flips all the meanings of normal codes and conventions of documentaries to develop a comedic twist and become a mockumentary.
The film opens with some white text on a black screen:
To further establish the setting a range of shots of a window and an unmade bed are shown before the credits, which lead into shots of a computer and a desk on top of which are the credits and the title of the film in a typewriter font, accompanied by the sounds of typing.
I think that these typing sounds will work well with our film also, as a precursor to shots we plan to have of ladies in a dating agency, like the Undateables.
The contrast of the red font against a black and white background also works well as it stands out, yet is still simple with no capitalisation on the title and the typewriter font. This makes the movie seem very amateur, which is a common theme running throughout mockumentaries and can often add to the type of humour involved in the film.
The remainder of the film is structured as the voiceover of the dog and shots alternating between his daily life and shots of him sitting infront of the camera, interview style.
This is how we are currently planning to structure our introduction, using a range of narration and candid shots mixed with mid shots of the characters in an interview style, which is typical of both documentaries and mockumentaries.
Sound
The music in the film is very simple, as to not take away from the humour going on and to give the feel of an amateur film, however it is still quite quirky and adds to the sense of humour and irony in the film, whilst sound effects such as typing and a clock ticking further this.
The voiceover is common to almost every other mockumentary that I have seen and will definitely play a key role in our movie. In order to explain what is going on in our movie in such a short amount of time, it will be necessary that we layer voiceovers coming from individual interviews with shots of what is going on in the storyline itself, much like Carl.
In terms of the script, the voiceover is the only thing spoken in the film. The way in which the main character says funny and ironic lines in such a monotone and serious voice is exactly what we are aiming for in our film.
Mise-en-scene
In Carl, the fact that the actor is going through a tough time is depicted a lot through mise-en-scene with the use of simplistic shots in black and white:
This is repeated throughout the film, with close up shots of the dog driving, sitting down and even making coffee as he speaks about his struggles. This is very common to many mockumentaries and is definitely an element we should consider incorporating.
Attitudes to Characters/Setting/Theme
The general attitude towards the sole character in this film is portrayed using deadpan and absurd humour. The film uses the codes and conventions of a normal documentary (single camera set-up, mostly close ups, hand-held camera and minimal graphics), combined with black and white and pathetic fallacy (the rain), which creates what would normally be a completely serious and sombre attitude towards the main character and the theme. However, when combined with the subject matter and the fact that the main character is a dog, this flips all the meanings of normal codes and conventions of documentaries to develop a comedic twist and become a mockumentary.
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