Mockumentary in The Blair Witch Project

The emergence of genre came from the contribution of ideas by film makers to a common ideology which created categorization of cinema (Nichols, 2001). Documentaries are considered a cinematic genre and are derived from the intention to capture authenticity but instead advocated objectivity. It consists of six modes of representation which are poetic, observational, participatory, expository, reflexive and performative (Nichols, 2001). Film makers strive towards unrealistic intention to film reality in its purest form but instead started to converge modes of representation (Nichols, 2001). Nichols (2001) also stated that a respective dominant mode does not dictate a film, instead just guides the structure of development. The report is intended to educate how The Blair Witch Project has applied a performative style of documenting while still incorporating the other modes of representation. The film is the first mockumentary and it is praised for including other modes of representation as a non-fictional way of creating a fictional film. By analysing how The Blair Witch Project applies the modes or representation, the report gives a thorough understanding towards the theories of documentaries as well as the manipulation of these theories also known as techniques to achieve maximum creativity.

Documentary films define as a genre of cinema that reports real world events through film. It consists of six sub-genres also known as the six modes of representation. Each mode consists of its own style of representation which dictates its respective degree of authenticity. To start off, poetic defines as an avant-garde style of documenting which prioritises rhythmic editing and spatial juxtapositions to indirectly convey subliminal messages (Nichols, 2001).  Observational defines as an uninterrupted style of documenting towards the behaviours of subject whom do not acknowledge the presence of the camera (Nichols, 1991). Participatory also known as Interactive defines as an interactive style of documenting by the film makers of the interviewees (Nichols, 2001). Moreover, expository defines as the emphasis on the voice-of-God as a narrative along with the combination of fragmented visuals to convey objective information that supports a particular argument (Nichols, 1991 & 2001). The author also stated that reflexive defines as a method of representing reality through evidently showing the filming process. Lastly, performative defines as a poetic style of documenting which places emphasis of artistic visuals to convey messages indirectly (Nichols, 2001). There are two sub-genres of performative mode that is Docu-drama, which defines as the application of fictional film techniques to create non-fictional films; mockumentary which defines as the application of non-fictional film techniques to create fictional films. To summarise the theory of the Blair Witch Project, it is mainly a mockumentary film categorised under the performative mode of representation but overlaps with other modes of representation.

The film is about a group of 3 students who ventured to a secluded town to film their documentary entitled the Blair Witch Project. It is based on an unproven folktale in that area about a ghost being the cause of missing children. Driven by the testimonials of local folks, they pursued the case further by venturing into the woods where the graves of the missing children and crime site were rumored to be located at. Throughout their journey, they argued constantly as they kept getting lost while being exhausted. Furthermore, Josh mysteriously disappeared, and Heather happened to find his   ear detached from his body. Heather and Mike set out to look for John but found themselves in a seemingly abandoned and scary warehouse. It was there, that they were struck by the murderer.

As the film is a mockumentary, it is categorised as a performative mode of representation. The reason being it utilises the techniques other five modes of representations as a non-fictional method of creating a fictional film. It is very much evident that the poetic mode was included in the film. For example, there were many fragmented shots of the living creatures in forests such tree branches, logs and river to provoke a tone of mood to represent a message indirectly (visual 1). Furthermore, the film included observational mode as the characters were also the subject of film whose actions were recorded unobtrusively when they were circling the forest, supported with the presence of natural light and sound.  Interactive mode of representation was evident during the interviews with Mary Brown (visual 2) and the two men on the rock (visual 3). When Mary Brown was describing the ghost, Heather instilled ideas by reconfirming Brown’s description as she was skeptical of Brown’s testimony. As for the older man who was fishing, there was evident interaction them both as Heather reconfirmed his description of the ghost’s appearance by asking him that if it came out of the woods which he then corrected her by stating that it rose out of the water. When the film crew was filming Heather at Coffin Rock, she was the voice-over of that particular scene being the voice-of-God. It was then that she described the horrific incident of the five fine men who were bounded and died of a gruesome death. Her narrative was paired with fragmented shots of the rock’s surroundings which allowed audiences to focus on her storytelling. Lastly, techniques of reflexive mode were also used throughout the film. One of which included filming the film makers (visual 4). Other techniques included shaky camera, natural light and sound, and acknowledgement of the presence of camera during the scene where they were at Coffin Rock. The film utilised the other respective five modes of representation – poetic, observational, interactive, expository and reflexive- to create a mockumentary, which supported the performative aspect of the fictional film.

Visual 1

Visual 2

Visual 3

Visual 4 

By utilising non-fictional filming techniques to create a fictional film, it makes the film very realistic. Although audiences may not fully immerse into the film due to the techniques of reflexive mode, but they are invested emotional in terms of empathising with the characters. The Blair Witch Project was the first film to ever utilise this technique of creating film and has successfully managed to build anticipation during the horror scenes without using traditional Hollywood horror film techniques such as emphasizing on sound effects and jump cuts. In conclusion, it is the emphasis on reality that the film managed to scare audiences on a deeper level.  

References

Nichols, B. (1991). Representing Reality : Issues and Concepts in Documentary. Indiana University

Press, pp 32-3.

Nichols, B. (2001). Introduction to Documentary. Indiana University Press, Chapter 6, pp 99 – 137.