Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Teaching
Mockumentaries:
Point
of
View
By:
Amanda
Amanullah
For
logistics
and
project
parameters:
1) If
choosing
a
feature-length
or
short
film,
students
would
watch
the
entire
film.
2) If
choosing
a
series
or
show,
students
would
watch
the
first
3-5
episodes
(depending
on
length
of
episode).
3) Students
would
then
present
their
findings
to
the
class
in
the
form
of
a
presentation,
almost
like
a
teach-in,
answering
the
research
questions
through
visuals
and
speaking.
4) Students
do
not
have
to
stick
to
these
foundational
versions
of
research
questions,
but
can
complicate
their
theses
as
they
dig
deeper
into
the
material.
We
only
ask
that
it
relate
to
point
of
view
and
characters.
Examples:
The
Office:
The
show
leans
towards
the
portrayal
of
an
awkward
and
distanced
relationship
of
coworkers.
Characters
often
winked
at
the
camera
when
someone
else
was
not
watching
and
we
heard
side
conversations
in
audible
whispers.
The
commitment
to
these
aspects
supported
the
style
of
narrative
and
the
humor
of
mocking
a
bland,
boring
office
space.
Parks
and
Recreation:
The
show
actively
utilized
the
concept
of
interviewing
to
reveal
characters
motives
and
shift
the
scope
of
the
story:
Road
Trip
[Season
3,
Episode
4]
Ron:
It's
never
too
early
to
learn
that
the
government
is
a
greedy
piglet
that
suckles
on
the
taxpayers'
teat
until
they
have
sore,
chapped
nipples.
...I'm
gonna
need
a
different
metaphor
to
give
this
nine
year
old.
Eagleton
[Season
3,
Episode
12]
Ron:
I
don't
like
loud
noises
and
people
making
a
fuss.
And
I
especially
don't
like
people
celebrating
because
they
know
a
piece
of
private
information
about
me.
Plus
the
whole
thing
is
a
scam:
birthdays
w ere
invented
by
Hallmark
to
sell
cards.
Eagleton
[Season
3,
Episode
12]
Leslie:
Ron
refuses
to
tell
anyone
when
his
birthday
is;
he's
even
had
it
redacted
on
all
government
documents.
Three
years
of
investigations,
phone
calls,
Freedom
of
Information
Act
requests,
and
I
still
had
nothing.
Until,
a
well
placed
bribe
to
a
gentleman
at
Baskin
Robins
revealed...
Ron's
birthday
is
on
Friday!
In
the
first
example
(Season
3,
Episode
4)
we
see
a
very
Ron-specific
view
about
the
government.
Ron
is
ironic
because
he
hates
the
government,
yet
works
for
the
government.
Quotes
such
as
this
one
from
Episode
4
are
things
he
says
directly
to
the
camera
during
interviews.
They
are
sidebars
through
which
the
writers
develop
his
character.
Within
the
same
episode
(Season
3,
Episode
12),
we
see
two
perspectives
(Rons
and
Leslies)
about
Rons
upcoming
birthday.
Their
dialogue
and
dispositions
are
typical
of
their
characters
Ron
hates
celebrations
and
Leslie
loves
them.
Nonetheless,
getting
this
insiders
view
about
the
situation
from
both
ends
is
a
clever
and
creative
way
of
portraying
third-person
omniscience
in
film.
It
enhances
the
narrative
in
a
purposeful
way.