People Just Do Nothing
As mentioned in my The Office posts, I am researching the cinematic styles used within Mockumentaries that are similar to Kate and I's production. This will include analysing the following:
- Camera Movement
- Camera Shot Sizes/Angles
- Interview Setup
- Lighting
- Sound
- Exposure
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| Title sequence of People Just Do Nothing |
Camera Movement
Reasonably similar to The Office, this Mockumentary too is dominated by handheld shots throughout the narrative. However, the shot lengths are much smaller - they don't tend to consist of long shots where the camera pans/tracks to follow the actions. Instead, it is evident that there is a multi-camera setup due to the shots frequently cutting to one another.
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| A shot showing the camera 'spying', reinforcing this third person perspective that seems conventional within Mockumentaries |
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| Still shots are used to establish locations |
Another difference is that still shots are also used for establishing shots (which is uncommon for Mockumentaries to have) as well as for interviews. All in all, the use of camera is at a much slower yet smoother pace - despite long shots being uncommon there is still a feeling of realism within the show - just not as effective as The Office. Likewise, People Just Do Nothing rarely uses pull focuses yet however has a range of both tracking and panning shots.
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| Here the cameraman is sat in the back and has a shot of Grindah |
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| Before panning left to Beats in shot, where both of them fit nicely in each frame. |
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| We move to a cut which has all three characters in shot almost perfectly - are they purposely attempting to create tight and rehearsed shots? |
Camera Shot Sizes/Angles
Also different to The Office, the shot sizes seem to be much tighter and what you'd usually expect. This may seem effective in a way however it does create the problem of the show seeming as if the shots have been planned, removing this natural and realistic tone. This can be seen in the image below: as the camera pans between Grindah and Beats, both characters seem to be nicely placed in the shot, hinting that it could have been rehearsed. Although it is very likely it has been rehearsed as it's a Mockumentary, it removes the natural feel unlike both US and the UK version of The Office.
Interview Setup
Interview setups however remain slightly conventional to the documentary genre - all the shots are still and have a relative and iconic background. However, the shot sizes and angles tend to differ - it seems conventional for the narrative to have long shots and low angles with the actors positioned in the background rather than the foreground. In a way the interviews look very effective as they tend to emphasis on the grimy location in which the show is set in. However, once again it follows this idea that it is fixed instead of trying to be realistic, as you can see in the image below.
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| Another unconventional interview shot that also shows sub-headings being used to introduce the characters |
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| An interview with Beats - unconventional compared to both versions of The Office. |
Lighting
As previously mentioned, the lighting for interviews seem naturalistic which too seems evident throughout the narrative. Despite the radio station studio seems to be lowly-lit, the production cleverly use lamps as a way of lighting up the studio, giving it a realistic feel (which you can see from the image below).
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| Here we see no forced lighting - only lighting you would expect from lamps and bulbs. |
Sound
Sound is probably the key aspect that conveys the most similarities to The Office and other Mockumentaries that I've researched. We see no evidence of sound gear again enabling the audience to forget about the Documentary Crew. Cleverly, microphones in which DJ Grindah and Beats talk/rap into are used to an advantage and actually used a sound output, meaning that they can use this as a microphone even though it is more of a prop.
Despite there being no evidence of sound gear, this is partially disrupted by the way the audience is often reminded the documentary crew are there. For example, we hear them ask the actors questions, the actors talk to the camera, and they look into the camera. However, this helps to reinforce this documentary feel - documentaries typically have the crew asking questions to help the narrative flow. Therefore, it seems that People Just Do Nothing typically reminds the audience that it is a documentary, making it seem more realistic in a way that it is a documentary, but then again not realistic as the way they ask questions may make it seem forced.
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| Here the microphone prop is actually used as a sound recording equipment. |
Exposure
In terms of exposure, it seems that People Just Do Nothing too seems it has a camera with a higher f.stop lens like The Office (US). This enables the Mockuemntary to create sharp images, making it seem more convienting for documentaries as it focuses on the subject rather the background.
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| Sharp focus creates an emphasis on the characters |
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| However arguably makes it seem more cinematic and less natural |
Differences of People Just do Nothing
- Long, mixed angle shots for interviews: primarily to emphasise on the location.
- Constant referencing to the Documentary Crew throughout each episode.
- Sharp shots to focus on the subject rather than it's location
- Higher use of still shots which establish scenes and for interviews
- Shorter shot sizes and multi camera set up, removing pans/tracks and pull focuses.
- Documentary Crew asking questions
Conventions of People Just Do Nothing
- Hiding sound equipment throughout each episode
- Third person perspective: shots that 'spy' on the actors
- Naturalistic lightings and settings
To conclude, it seems that People Just do Nothing follows a different approach to Mockumentaries. Instead of focusing on being realistic and having natural looking shots, this program focuses more on documentary as a genre, judging from the constant referrals, establishing shots and sub-titles of the actor's names.
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