Professional Practise

Ofcom Rules

(Stated Febuary 2011) Rules that we must consider when creating our documentary. These are most referential to our documentary.

Section four - Religion

4.2 The religious views and beliefs of those belonging to a particular religion or religious denomination must not be subject to abusive treatment.

4.3 Where a religion or religious denomination is the subject, or one of the subjects, of a religious programme, then the identity of the religion and/or denomination must be clear to the audience.

4.4 Religious programmes must not seek to promote religious views or beliefs by stealth.

4.6 Religious programmes must not improperly exploit any susceptibilities of the audience.

Section two - Harm and Offence

2.3 In applying generally accepted standards broadcasters must ensure that material which may cause offence is justified by the context (see meaning of "context" below). Such material may include, but is not limited to, offensive language, violence, sex, sexual violence, humiliation, distress, violation of human dignity, discriminatory treatment or language (for example on the grounds of age, disability, gender, race, religion, beliefs and sexual orientation). Appropriate information should also be broadcast where it would assist in avoiding or minimising offence.

Audience, Psychographic Profiling and Demographic groups

- Mass Audience - A large group of people consuming one product. For example, Ipod's are used by both men and women from all ages.

- Niche Audience - A small group of people that consume a media product. For example, only people aged over 50 will read The People's Friend

- Archetype - An original figure

- Stereotype - An over exagerated person

Psychographic Profiling

Most media producers have a clear picture on what social class and age group of people consume their product. However, for many companies this sometimes isn't enough. Psycographics is a process that explores the way in which individual behaviours are linked to form a personality. It focuses on the experience and behaviours of the individual and producers ensure their product appeals to the audience personality in a certain way.

Demographic Groups

Demographic groups have been created by the government and our defined according to peoples income and occupation.

'A' - Households are successful, professional or business occupated. People's occupation normally involves, surgeons, barristers and executives etc. It's said that only 2% of the population are in this category.

'B' - households are below them of group A, yet are still well off. These include doctors, dentists and directors or small companies etc.

'C1' - Households are the lower middle class and make up 1/4 of the population. This group includes trades people and people owning small businesses.

'C2' Households are skilled manual workers. For example, lorry drivers, crafts trademen and building sites.

'D' Households are unskilled manual workers, such as labourers, traffic wardens, factory workers, cleaners and so on...

'E' Households are people recieving benifits of unemployment and retired pensioners.

Genres Within Documentary

Docufiction - This definition of film making refers too the combination of documentary and fiction film making. Appearing at the beginning of the 21st century fictional elements were introduced into the documentary form.

Ethnofiction - This definition is a mixture of documentary and fiction film. Its subject is not the individual but the ethnicity, excepting when the individual represents it.

Docudrama - This combines the fields of documentary and drama and is usually a fictional and dramatized recreationof factual events. Docudrama can focus on contemporary issues as well as historical events.

Mockumentary - Unlike documentary, mockumentaries are used to depict things such as human behavior, social and political aspects to make them seem more surreal. Mockumentary is based on rhetorical modes of parody, pastiche and self-referential irony and most mockumentary films are improvised.

Mondo film - A Mondo film is a documentary film, however it sometimes resembles a psuedo -documentary, usually depicting sensational topics and scenes.

Genre comes from the french words 'type' and 'kind', and consists of categorising a text through style and form using generic conventions and paradigmetic elements (stories, rhetoric, signification). These generic conventions can be seen in a four part model:

Character
Narrative
Theme
Iconography

Cinéma Véritié vs Direct Cinema

Cinéma vérité combines the naturalistic techniques, against staged set-ups and stylized camera work and editing. Cinéma vérité believes this is a good technique at showing reality, yet still allowing the film makers to make it as creative as they want too. These stylized staged set-ups often pursuade the subject to be truthal. Whereas with Direct Cinema, its's mainly concerned with the recording of events, where the subject and audience become unaware of the camera's presence. Normally called the 'Observational Mode' (Bill Nichols) This draws the reality away from the truth, and creating cinematic truth.