Blackfish is a documentary that examines the dangers of keeping killer whales in captivity using archive footage and interviews. It tells the story of the killings of three people by the orca Tilikum and aims to show that orcas in captivity live shorter lives and display more aggressive behaviors compared to those in the wild. While SeaWorld disputes that keeping orcas in tanks is cruel, the documentary argues it is inhumane and has led to deaths of trainers. It presents an open-ended perspective by documenting the issue but not clearly taking a side since SeaWorld continues operations.

1. Blackfish

3. Type of documentary
I think that this documentary is overall a fly on the wall the
documentary because there is no overall film maker that can
be seen by the camera and because a lot of the programme
is made up of archive footage it is left up to the viewers to
draw up their own conclusion on what they think about the
evidence and story presented in the documentary

4. Narrative structure
o Linear- this documentary allowed the audience to have an understanding
on what was happening as the action was unfolding. The documentary
had no real commentary spoken by one particular presenter but the
voices of those interviewed was used to tell the story of what was
happening
o Open ending- the programme was documenting how many people have
been killed by killer whales in captivity. However, the ending of the
documentary isn’t resolved because SeaWorld is still open

5. themes
• Orcas in Captivity vs. Orcas in the Wild- the discussion as to whether having
orcas in captivity is cruel or not is often brought up throughout as
specialists believe that an orca in the wild lives longer and is safer whereas
the ones at SeaWorld had a shorter life span and would be very
aggressive, leading to the death of trainers
• Animal Cruelty- many are campaigning that letting a mammal as big as an
orca stay in a tank that is far too small for them is cruel. The documentary
explores how SeaWorld disagrees with these statements
• Death- the main reason as to why this documentary was even made was to
raise awareness about the killings of three people by the same orca,
Tilikum. However, it also told the stories of other people that had been
killed or seriously injured by one of the orcas in captivity

6. camerawork
• Zoom- the most popular form of camerawork used in the documentary because unlike the other
documentaries that I have studied this one was made up from a lot of archive material so often the camera
would zoom in on the image on the screen
• Mid Shot- due to there not actually being a lot of camerawork being used because it was mainly made up of
archive material, mid shot was another popular from of camerawork. When anyone that featured on the
programme was being interviewed about their experiences, they would be filmed in a mid shot to the side.
The unused space was useful because it allowed more focus to be drawn onto the person that was talking
• Pan shot- towards the end of the documentary the camera followed some of the ex trainers from SeaWorld as
they went and saw wild orcas. When they were on the boat, the camera panned so that the action could
be followed as the boat gained in speed
• Close-up- this shot was mainly used at the end of the documentary when they were in the boat. The camera
would zoom in on the trainers faces to grasp their emotions on seeing the wild orcas
•

7. Mise-en-scene
Setting- the main setting of the entire documentary was of course SeaWorld
because the reason for the documentary being made was to advertise the
dangers at SeaWorld and the little care that those who own it have for the
orcas that are enclosed at the park.
Another setting was the many places where people would be interviewed.
However, every place was different to the person being interviewed which
shows that the people all have a different part to the story to tell which overall
builds up the main story and problem at SeaWorld
Costume- the main recognisable costume used in the programme was the
wet suits or uniforms of the trainers at SeaWorld. Everyone else featured in the
documentary were wearing regular clothes

8. Sound
Non-Digetic sound
Audio from the archive clips
The noise of the orcas
Erie music played over the top
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SSq7LW3qu1k
Trailer for the documentary-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNMR_ryelTI
Digetic Sound
The people who were interviewed
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0k8dxCqZOzA

9. editing
• Cut- the clips would mostly cut to the next piece of archive video or even
the person that was being interviewed with the sound of the person who is
speaking being heard before the clip is shown
• Long Take- the shots would be on for a long time, longer than the other
documentaries that I watched used because they needed to keep the
clips on for a long time because the audience needed to conclude their
own story about what was happening due to the fly on the wall type of
documentary

10. Archive material
• Footage from the crowd
• Videos take from the SeaWorld park
• Footage from when the orcas were captured in the 70s
• Pictures
• Phone calls from the time of the crime
• News reports
• TV interviews

11. graphics
• The names of those interviewed
• Subtitle for the Spanish people in the documentary
• Names of places
• Times and dates
• Illustrations e.g. Drawings of people in court
• Diagram of how many orcas have been breaded through Tillikum