This document provides a brief history of the mockumentary genre through summaries and examples of influential mockumentaries. It traces the origins of the genre to Luis Buñuel's 1933 film Las Hurdes and highlights seminal works like This Is Spinal Tap that helped establish the genre. The document also profiles Christopher Guest's significant contributions and discusses modern mockumentaries from Borat to What We Do in the Shadows.

1. A Brief History

2. A fake documentary.
An entire genre of films devoted to
the satire of cultural and social
topics and issues.
It challenges our ability to believe
everything we are told, especially if
it’s a “documentary” or “journalism,”
i.e. “fake news.”
The harder-hitting mockumentaries
often draw attention to important
social issues through the use of the
satirical art form.
This is Spinal Tap (1984)

4.  “A surrealistic documentary portrait of the region of Las Hurdes, a remote region
of Spain where civilization has barely developed, showing how the local peasants
try to survive without even the most basic utilities and skills.” —IMDB
 Considered to be the first mockumentary.
 Directed by Louis Buñuel.
 Many scenes in this film were contrived (faked).
 Note the goat (how many takes did they do with that dead goat??).
 Film: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUmmfYagWDA

5.  “Over two "typical" days in the life of The Beatles, the boys struggle to keep
themselves and Sir Paul McCartney's mischievous grandfather in check while
preparing for a live television performance.” — IMDB
 Q: What makes it a mockumentary?
 A: It’s scripted.
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWbiVqlSMgc

6.  “Charts the adventures of the prefab four, possibly the most famous band of all
time.” —IMDB
 A satire of The Beatles’ trajectory of fame and fortune.
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJqp_KvOHts

7. The Era of Christopher Guest

8.  “Spinal Tap, one of England's loudest bands, is chronicled by film director Marty
DiBergi on what proves to be a fateful tour.”
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsFm6Yk_HkE
 Nigel’s Guitar Room: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g7-5io1muSQ&t=14s
 Created Christopher Guest’s career (he was a writer/actor on this film directed by
Rob Reiner.

9.  Went on to direct several other mockumentaries, most notably:
 Mascots (2016, Netflix)
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPxuwEA7Avc
 For Your Consideration (2006)
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QYlsn7C24hQ
 A Mighty Wind (2003)
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1VfVTNkmzI
 Best in Show (2000)
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94y9n9lNy2Y
 Waiting for Guffman (1996)
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0Ml4u3hLlY

10.  “A film crew follows a ruthless thief and heartless killer as he goes about his daily
routine. But complications set in when the film crew lose their objectivity and
begin lending a hand.” —IMDB
 A darker side of the mockumentary.
 Was a student film!
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UA_X23Ma0bI

11.  “Largely a mockumentary about artists within the gangsta rap genre, “Fear of a
Black Hat” follows sociologist Nina (Kasi Lemmons) as she spends a year
documenting the rise and fall of the fictional, controversial hip-hop group N.W.H.
for her thesis project. The movie’s title is a play on the title of Public Enemy’s 1990
album, “Fear of a Black Planet.” In a nod to a running joke in the 1984 film “This
Is Spinal Tap,” N.W.H. has a rotating crop of white managers who subsequently
die under mysterious circumstances.” — Stacker
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zqp-aSPqQYc

12.  “In “Street Thief,” two documentary filmmakers (Wesley Walker and Frank
Zieger) spend several weeks following Kaspar Carr (director Malik Bader), a
professional burglar who lives in Chicago. Things get risky when Kaspar invites
the two men to come along with him during robberies, then disappears while
robbing a local movie theater. Because of the realistic, handheld style in which the
movie was shot, as well as interviews with crime experts and police officers, many
viewers initially believed that they were watching a real documentary.” —Stacker
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TEC0NmiTuSY

13.  “Kazakh TV talking head Borat is dispatched to the United States to report on the
greatest country in the world. With a documentary crew in tow, Borat becomes
more interested in locating and marrying Pamela Anderson.” —IMDB
 Trailer:

14.  “Borat returns from Kazakhstan to America and this time he reveals more about
the American culture, the COVID-19 pandemic and the political elections.” —
IMDB
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JvPTCvUnNQA

15.  “Viago, Deacon and Vladislav are vampires who are finding that modern life has
them struggling with the mundane - like paying rent, keeping up with the chore
wheel, trying to get into nightclubs and overcoming flatmate conflicts.” —IMDB
 Made Taika Waititi’s career.
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAZEWtyhpes

16.  “A look into the daily (or rather, nightly) lives of three vampires, who've lived
together for over 100 years, on Staten Island.”
 Taika Waititi is not overly involved in this, but is most certainly collecting a
paycheck $, yay!
 Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfBbSwX6kEk

17.  Constantly criticized for it’s “journalism.”
 How to Launch a Military Coup
 The Ice Beard Surfers of Lake Superior | Local Legends

18.  IMDB.com
 “50 Best Mockmentary Movies,” Stacker, Abby Monteil, 2021
 “Bunuel and the land that never was,” The Guardian, Geoffrey McNab, 2000
 “The Mockumentary: A Very Real History,” JSTOR, Ashwanta Jackson, 2020
 “The History of the Mockumentary Artform,” 2015, NYFA