Documentary analysis- Caravans: A British love affair

1. Documentary analysis-
Caravans: A British Love Affair

2. Type of documentary
• This is a mixed documentary as it contains:
• Interviews
• Observation
• Narration and Archive footage

3. Themes
• The themes that are represented in this documentary are:
• Family
• Friends
• Lifestyle
• Country side
• Leisure
• Travel and holidays
Family theme
Travel and holidays theme

4. Narrative structure
• This documentary covers a single topic ensuring that it follows a
singular structure throughout and does not discuss any other topic.
• Additionally, this is open circulated as it starts in the present and then
proceeds to finish in the present timeline. However in the middle of
this it goes to the past and works its way forward discussing the
history of caravanning to reach the present.
Start (Present) End (Present)

5. Camera work
• Establishing shots of the caravans are shown in order to provide the audience
with context to what they are discussing
• The rule of thirds- The interviewee is usually placed in the middle and the camera
is placed to the right or to the left of the interviewee to make it seem like they
are at an angle. This helps to engage the audience and provide them with new
camera angles.
• Eyeline shots are used of the caravans to help provide context to what the
narrator or the interviewee is discussing.
Establishing shotRule of thirds

6. MISE- EN- SCENE
Paper documents that the narrator discusses that they were about the
creator of the caravan and it was significant to him. Images of him are
shown to provide the audience with a visual image of him
The image is used here to anchor the point about him.

7. Sound
• Vintage music is used during the showing of archive footage in order to
help create atmosphere and make the viewers aware that they are looking
at old material.
• The narrator is using standard English in order to make it easy to
understand and is formal making it informative to listen too for the
audience.
Diegetic sound is used during an interview where you could hear ambient
noises of birds and the outdoors which aids in building the atmosphere
At one point discussing the noise levels of being in the caravan the non
diegetic music in the background stops and it is all diegetic to imagine us in
their position.

8. Editing
• Sound bridges and music are used during this documentary in order to retain the pace and keep it interesting and engage the audience.
• Zooming out on images is used to allow the audience to spot smaller details
• The questions that are asked to the interviewees are edited out as it provides no importance to what they will say, this will also save time and
keep it at a faster pace.
• Observational footage uses cuts to cover jump cuts they have done
Zoom out
Jump cut

9. Archive material
• Old photographs are shown to help create a better image for the
audience of what is being discussed
• Old caravans are shown in person to provide more detail for the
audience and history of the caravans
• Historical video/footage is used to engage the audience and to
illustrate a point

10. Graphics
• Names of the people and their roles are shown at the start of an
interview
• Opening titles and end credits are used.