Trailer - Five Conventions

• Cinematography Our footage will be as raw and as real as possible. This is a convention mockumentaries use because mockumentaries are essentially satirical portrayals of reality in the form of documentaries. Even though we are doing a parody of a mockumentary we will still use the same conventions. Our lighting will be natural classroom lighting, our cameras will be handheld (probably smartphones) apart from when interviews are happening where the camera will be on a tripod.

• Sound As we are aiming to be as realistic as possible sound will be diegetic. That is, apart from our theme music which will play with the Office-Esque volley of shots like from their intro but of Boys’ High with a badly played office intro in the background. 

• Interviews A parody of The Office would not be complete without the interview. Interviews are one of the main conventions of The Office and allow the viewer to hear what characters are thinking while still maintaining the realism of a documentary. The interviews allow students to communicate their thoughts on the situation that has just unfolded, adding another dimension to the production and hopefully more comedic value. Occasionally interviews may start as a voiceover to give it more of a documentary feel and to make the transition between the scene and the interview cleaner.

• Skit Skits are comedic short stories and the foundation of mockumentaries. They give a glimpse into the character's lives with a dash of comedy that both develops characters and keeps the audience laughing. Our skits will be things that actually happen within GBHS - and could realistically happen in any school - but are funny to people watching, usually through some form of irony. Students will make absurd situations funnier by taking a rational and sober perspective on 

• Setting The setting for our trailer will be present-day Gisborne Boys' High School, and - as with the Office - most scenes will be shot in one room, in our case, a classroom, but there will also be a couple of shots from outside the classroom.