What are the connotations of the image, font, colour, or title?
What do you expect to see or hear in the opening?
I expect that the person that's on the thumbnail is the villain in this documentary. I expect a lot of questions to help guide me through not just general questions like “who did it?” or “what happened”.
Extreme Close Up shot of an old lady who looks very much sick and pale, this could tell us that she's in a bad condition. The word WORST & EVER stands out the most because it wants us to focus on the two negative words to help us get those negative thoughts.
I expect to see a quick overview or like a short summary of the reason why “this roommate” is the worst. I expect to see the victims.
After You Watch
Who is the target audience? Why do you think so?
Give one example of each and explain the meaning:
Camera:
Mise-en-scène:
Editing:
Sound:
People who are interested in relationship type of crimes, mostly women adults that could be living alone - without a roommate.
Camera: Close up shots of the faces, This creates suspense which allows us to focus on the characters, so we know who’s the villain and the main attention.
MES: The pills, Pills are often used to showcase sickness and illness. This can tell us that the situation involves sickening behaviors and very unstable activities.
Editing: Flashbacks, The flashback pictures of her in the hospital tells us that these things happen in the past. This also helps the audience develop sympathy for the character.
Sound: Unsettling music, The music brings attention to audiences so they can feel more intense. The build up allows audiences to want to stay longer to continue watching.
Would you continue watching?
Why/Why not?
I would want to continue watching, because I wanna actually know who this person is and what really happened. Since theres alot of missing information, it brings the attention for audience wanting them to keep on watching.
2. What Jennifer Did, 2024
Documentary Opening 2: What Jennifer Did
Before You Watch
Look only at the thumbnail and title.
What are your expectations for the documentary?
What are the connotations of the image, font, colour, or title?
What do you expect to see or hear in the opening?
I expect that the person on the thumbnail will do intense violence to the point a whole documentary had to be made. I expect unexpected points that would create a shocking hook.
The first thing I noticed is the red filter. The colour red always connotes as murder, death or danger. This could imply that she has done a murderous activity. We also see that it's a portrait of her but one half is happy and the other looks pissed. Which could tell us that this Jennifer girl has two personalities that no one knew she had. ( people know her as an innocent girl but there's also a bad side of her that people don't know ).
I expect to see a few shots and hints of the things that she did because that helps audiences hook up and find out more about the documentary. I expect scary images immediately.
After You Watch
Who is the target audience? Why do you think so?
Give one example of each and explain the meaning:
Camera:
Mise-en-scène:
Editing:
Sound:
Teenagers, because this Jennifer character who apparently is the villain appears to look like a teenager, which could be interesting to watch someone their age do crime activities. Overall its towards audiences who enjoy suspenseful, true events films.
Camera: High angle, The interview scene was shot through the CCTV lens that was at a high angle. This meaning could imply that the person in this room is weak and helpless. This connotes because the girl is seen crying (weak) but she is also helpless because she isn't telling the truth (acting innocent when she isn't).
MES: The house, The purpose of the house was to show where the location was and what was really inside the place. It also helped show the audience that Jennifer had to suffer in - a very small cramped, dull, “broken” house. This could then show audiences that she is living very poorly and could potentially be struggling, making the audience feel sympathetic.
Editing: Jump cuts, The quick cuts allow the audience to get hooked up and become intense with the images that quickly change. This allows the audience to become more excited and makes them want to watch longer for more scenes.
Sound: The 911 call, The conversation between the police officer and Jennifer makes it even more suspenseful as it allows the audience to hear full detailed information. This allows them to feel like they aren't missing any important features of the crime. In general it helps create suspense to the audience to feel like they are a part of the investigation, witnessing the crime.
Would you continue watching?
Why/Why not?
I would like to continue watching because this documentary’s opening scene has a huge twist. Since we expect Jennifer to do something bad, the first part of the documentary shows Jennifer in a position that she's innocent to the crime investigation. I think this is really interesting because I wanna know how she was caught from acting all innocent to being the killer.
3. A Deadly American Marriage, 2025
Documentary Opening 3: A Deadly American Marriage
Before You Watch
Look only at the thumbnail and title.
What are your expectations for the documentary?
What are the connotations of the image, font, colour, or title?
What do you expect to see or hear in the opening?
Based on the thumbnail, I expect to know who the two couples are and which one is the villain. Based on the picture, because the girl looks less happy this hints us that she may be the villain and the boy who looks more innocent is the victim. Overall, I would be more excited to see plot twists within the story.
The first connotations are the two facial expressions that we can see. The first one is the man with a bigger smile, this can connote that the man is a very cheerful, happy person. The outfit being a white dress and a tuxedo is a common stereotypical outfit used to show a married couple which is why we can predict the two being the main character as the title “marriage” and their outfits match.
I expect to learn about the family fast and to get a quick summary of what really happened. This allows me to focus on the main questions and to get into the documentary to get a detailed understanding about their situations. I expect that at least one of them is dead or it could be a twist where they are both dead.
After You Watch
Who is the target audience? Why do you think so?
Give one example of each and explain the meaning:
Camera:
Mise-en-scène:
Editing:
Sound:
I think this could potentially target couples because it allows them to watch couples fights and get them hooked up. It should also help them become more relatable and to learn from these big mistakes. Overall these target people who want to get involved with serious drama and need entertainment.
Camera: High angle shot of the interview, there were clips of interviews that were recorded using a high angle from a CCTV. The high angle is used to show the whole situation to let viewers see the surroundings inside the interview. Making them feel like they are a part of the situation.
MES: The bat, this is a very important detail of the documentary because it's a critical moment of the crime. Showcasing this allows the audience to visualise the weapon and to make it seem more immersive. Without the detail, the audience would have to guess the image of the bat which can change the imagination.
Editing: Flashback, flashback edits are used to help show the past from the present. Showing an old footage of a little girl after a teenage girl tells us that they are connected, which means that the little girl is the teenager we see first. It allows us to show the past trauma an innocent little girl had to face which gives the audience empathy to the family.
Sound: 911 call, the audio that was being played was used to build up tension for the audience as it allows them to listen to the real full conversation of the report, allowing the audience to feel like they are the police officer receiving the call. Overall it helps the audience feel the tension which drives them to want to know more.
Would you continue watching?
Why/Why not?
I would like to continue watching this because the opening scene gave us a quick summary of what happened and who died. But it also gave us a huge question which allows us to think twice. It shows us that even though they were in a fight, only the person who died got injured and the others were clean. This gives a huge plot twist that drives us to get into the documentary deeper.
4. The Astroworld Tragedy, 2025
Documentary Opening 4: The Astroworld Tragedy
Before You Watch
Look only at the thumbnail and title.
What are your expectations for the documentary?
What are the connotations of the image, font, colour, or title?
What do you expect to see or hear in the opening?
From the thumbnail, based on the different objects that can be seen can be a representation of the people who are a part of the documentary. The broken phone just basically shows that the situation was a broken scenario and it was just chaotic.
The word “Wreck” in TrainWreck that is slightly tilted implies that the problem is very broken and shows that it isn't a perfect situation. The missing shoe is also a huge connotation as it shows abandoned or even the death of someone who once wore them.
I expect to know what really happened and how Travis Scott became the most hated person after the show that had happened. I also expect to see victims and how they really die in a concert.
After You Watch
Who is the target audience? Why do you think so?
Give one example of each and explain the meaning:
Camera:
Mise-en-scène:
Editing:
Sound:
I think it's towards teenagers specifically, because this did happen at a concert where the audience and the people who died were basically teenagers. It also targets Travis Scott’s fans since he’s also very well known in the teenager’s generation.
Camera: Handheld, This technique was used to show different people’s recordings during the concert. This allows the audience to feel like they are a part of the fun experience viewing what they could've been into.
MES: Siren lights, The siren lights were used to showcase the ambulance. This tells us that there is an emergency happening and it's very alerting. Knowing that they're worth a lot of siren lights means that there was a big emergency.
Editing: Jump cuts, These cuts were mainly used to show different aspects of the same situation and same timeline. Allowing viewers to view every single point of detail at a certain time.
Sound: Loud Crowd, These were used to emphasise the amount of people that were in that concert. This tells us that there were a lot of people chanting and it brings the mood very loud.
Would you continue watching?
Why/Why not?
I’m a Travis Scott fan myself so of course I want to know what really happened at a concert that I would've died to go to. Overall, even if it's a simple / boring documentary, I’m gonna watch it because of the hype it got on TikTok and because it's a very memorable moment for one of my favorite artist.
5. The Boston Marathon Bombing, 2023
Documentary Opening 5: The Boston Marathon Bombing
Before You Watch
Look only at the thumbnail and title.
What are your expectations for the documentary?
What are the connotations of the image, font, colour, or title?
What do you expect to see or hear in the opening?
Based on the thumbnail I can tell that there will be a bombing and it will affect a lot of people because a marathon would mean a huge wave of people running.
The smoke helps connote us that there will be something burning happening and because it's about a bombing we can assume that that would be the bombing situation.
I expect to see the whole situation of what really happened during, who actually did it, and how they actually found out since it was a sea of people and it would be difficult to look out for those suspects.
After You Watch
Who is the target audience? Why do you think so?
Give one example of each and explain the meaning:
Camera:
Mise-en-scène:
Editing:
Sound:
Because it's a very historical event, it could also be potentially targeted towards teachers and even history students. It may also just benefit people who enjoy watching historical documentaries or mass murder.
Camera: Handheld, Were a lot of handheld shots of people recording the situation. This allows viewers to feel like they're a part of the marathon and to feel like they are witnessing everything.
MES: The police car, This place plays a huge role in identifying the person that we see in front of the police car. This tells audiences that the police were definitely involved and the car could've been a very important part of the situation.
Editing: Jump cuts, There were a lot of jump cuts that showed different people and different places. This allows viewers to view the different witnesses of the crime and their position. For example, the kid with a high school basketball background shows that he could've been a student witness that may be related to the suspect.
Sound: Tense music, The background music is used to build up suspense and tension so that audiences are more interested to watch and to learn more. It just builds up the tension to keep on watching.
Would you continue watching?
Why/Why not?
Because of how historical this moment was I obviously would love to watch it and to rewind what really happened during that special event. Because this was related to mass murder and my topic for my project is related to that I decided to watch it and to understand the technical elements and the technique used.
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