Research : 3 Minute Wonder

A 3 minute wonder is a short segment, usually educational, that goes in between programmes on channel 4. It gives first time directors a chance to showcase their work on a large television network and helps them get their foot in the industry. Channel 4 offer the directors that produce 3 minute wonders £4000 for their work and also provide assistance through the process. 3 minute wonders are broadcast every weekday at 7:55 pm and usually are usually based on serious topics although Karl Pilkington was featured on these 3 minute wonder where it was humour based.

The main aim of a 3 minute wonder is to help new directors showcase their talent and hopefully break into a competitive industry. 3 minute wonders are also a fantastic platform to distribute opinions via a big platform and enlighten people with different viewpoints. 3 minute wonder concentrate on highlighting issues that are not in the public eye as well, example of this include domestic abuse or synesthesia.

Topics are usually based on serious issues that aren't in the public eye. For example one of the 3 minute wonders are about a group of girls who are dressing in a retro style from East London, this wouldn't be a viable news piece for news outlets or have enough substance for a full documentary so it works really well with the 3 minute wonder segment. It gives a small segment of television to people who want to distribute something that is important to them in a documentary genre.

King Of Laughter

This is one of the favourite 3 minute wonders that I watched mainly down to the 'feel good factor' it had. This is all about Belachew Girma who simply laughs a lot and wants to get other people laughing as well as he feels not enough people are happy anymore. I loved it because the 3 minute wonder felt real and it felt like we were living a day with the man himself. The camera angle used was also really realistic as the camera was mounted to his body making the walking movement feel more natural.

From King Of Laughter I have learnt that people enjoy spending time with people that are happy and there are not enough happy people gracing the streets of our world. I also learnt that laughter is incredibly infectious and if you laugh for long enough eventually the person in your company will join you. King Of Laughter has a fairly humoerous feeling to it but a deeper meaning surfaces when you look into it, it's a story about making people happy and bringing a smile to peoples faces even if it is for a split second.

I would say that King Of Laughter is a observational documentary as it's an unobtrusive construction of Girma's life and the filmmaker is simply a bystander. As well as this King Of Laughter is is non judgmental and presents a completely transparent record of his day. It's completely up to the audience what to think of Girma and this is another reason why we know it's an observational documentary.   

Last Supper

This 3 minute wonder severely contrasts King Of Laughter and is very hard hitting with a clear story with no humour what so ever. Despite this, I thoroughly enjoyed it but for differing reasons. The whole 3 minutes was presented of a prison inmate on the phone talking about his last supper and coming to terms with it. It was very moving and the phone call gave it an extra edge as it made you think about just how disconnected he was from the outside world. The visuals were also nicely shot as well with a harrowing last image of the last supper he will eat, one scoop of ice cream.

I have learnt from this that you can feel sympathy for death row inmates if they are portrayed in the right way. The inmate in this 3 minute wonder seemed to show genuine remorse and talked about how his family have not done anything but will be punished due to his actions. It taught me that is death row really the correct way to punish criminals?

I would say that Last Supper fits into the category of an observational documentary as it allows the audience to make their own minds up about what to think. The inmate simply speaks to the camera in a very raw fashion with limited editing which allows the 3 minute wonder to create a feeling of realness that the audience can connect with.

Karl Pilkington - Holidays

There is something about Karl Pilkington's simplistic way of life that I find incredibly engaging. He has made his living by being almost negative yet people laugh at him, it's something I've never really come across before. I think it's down to his brutal truth and simple look at things that connects people to him. Fame hasn't seemed to effect Karl and that's evident in this 3 minute wonder of him talking about holiday's. I really enjoy this because of the 'chatty' nature of the 3 minute wonder and really does sum up the average holiday. I enjoy Karl Pilkington's work anyway so a 3 minute wonder with him in it is a great combination for me.

I learnt from this that as long as the person in the 3 minute wonder is interesting the editing or production doesn't have to be extravagant in any shape or form. This is pretty much a webcam video yet due to the subject being interesting it has allowed the audience to engage with the piece. I also now take a different look at holidays, thanks Karl...

This Karl Pilkington 3 minute wonder is very hard to place in a documentary format as it doesn't really fit with common documentary guidelines. I would say that this is most like a expository documentary as you could argue that Pilkington is the voice over and all of the facts and arguments are provided by Pilkington. It's also made up of direct representation and objectivity due to Pilkington's truthfulness.