Documentary Analysis 3 - That Thing / Lara Croft

Title of programme:

That thing / Lara Croft

Type of documentary:

Mixed - Interviews, Actuality footage, Archive material.

Themes:

Icons, feminism, Power of the media, the representation of women.

Narrative Structure:

Single strand, Closed narrative, Non-Linear – It plays about with time; it is not in chronological order.

Camera Work:

Interviews were filmed either to the left or right hand side of the screen and shot in close up or medium close up, the interviewee’s eye line is approximately 1/3 of the way up the screen. Zoom/Pans across people on computers. Tilted framing is also used along with a big close up. Medium close ups are used regularly throughout the documentary.

Mise-en-scene:

CHROMAKEY – Blue or green screen used as the backdrop for the interviews. A lot of the chromakey, the background was out of focus to draw the audiences attention to what was in focus – The person being interviewed. All the interviews are done with good lighting – the room is well lit on all interviews. Font projection – the projector is over the woman’s face who is being interviewed. The creator of Lara Croft is treated like a computerised character.

Sound:

Voice over – Male – Standard English – Young. A young person is used because the topic is a game, which appeals to a younger audience. A relaxed approach is used by the man doing the voice over. Music and sound effects from the game were used throughout the documentary. The music used in the documentary signifies that the target audience of the documentary is younger people.

Editing:

Simple cutting is used to avoid distracting the attention of the audience from what is happening on screen. Fast motion is used in the documentary.

Archive Material:

Websites
Extracts from the game
Emails
Nike Advert
Interview with Angelina (who plays Lara Croft in the film)

Graphics:

Text is always on the opposite side of the screen than the person. The top line of text is always bigger than the bottom line of text; this draws emphasis on the persons name rather than their occupation. Capital letters are not used.