Dawn Porter: Documentary Analysis

Now I have looked at the style Dawn Porter adopts in her writing, I want to analyse and deconstruct some documentaries she has produced. This will provide me with a deeper understanding of the successful codes and conventions used to make a good documentary. As well as looking at camera angles and editting, I will also be looking at the scripting referencing to what she says and how she says it and moments where Dawn is talking alone.


The following is a clip from Dawn's documentary 'Extreme Wife' where she investigates why men have left America in search of love. I chose to focus on this clip as it used careful editting throughout which I could replicate in my production piece.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A3dFPuJzh4&feature=related

The interesting aspect that first stood to me when analysing this clip was  the way Dawn intereacted with the subjects. She is sitting with them at a dinner table asking them questions, making it feel more conversational rather than like an interview which allows the subjects to open up more about their lifestyles. It also gives the impression that Dawn is more interested about their lives.

The use of cuttaways emphasises this as it shows Dawn's reactions and how she is taking an interest into the responses of her questions.

Dawn's voiceover in this clip is an effective feature I feel would be good to replicate in my documentary. She does this to introduce the people she is talking to whilst they are all sitting around the table, for example 'Jean is another divorced truck driver with a dry wit'. This is said over different shots of Jean interacting with the group and close ups of him. This provides the audience with background information about each individual Dawn talks to. I therefore feel this will be a good way of introducing subjects in my production piece.

A range of camera shots are used throughout this clip such as long shots, close ups, mid shots and over the shoulder shots. Using long shots is an effective convention as it allows the audience to view the location and surrounding making them feel more involved with the text. Close ups and side shots are used to get a better reflection of the subject and to focus our attention on their facial expressions. I feel these will be effective features to use when producing my documentary.



Side shot of Dawn showing her reaction and facial expression







Long shot emphasising the location



Close up shot to obtain a beter reflection of the person talking

Dawn adopts a friendly, colloquial tone similar to her style of writing which makes her questions less intense. It is clear that she has a set list of questions she wants to ask the subjects to obtain the information she needs. However, once she starts questionning them, she responds to their answers as they have introduced another issue and therefore does not stick to a set script. I feel this will be effective when producing my documentary as the people I speak to may say things I want to discuss further.
She doesn't appear to judge the people she interacts with but her opinion is shown through her voiceover. For example, 'he strikes me as someone with realistic expectations' shows her opinion about one of the men. I feel this reflective tone would be another feature to replicate for my production piece.