Documentary Deconstruction: Diaries of a Broken Mind (BBC 3)

In this documentarys opening editing is a key area that helps portray the purpose/content of
the show: living with mental health problems. The techniques used help to engage the
audience and perhaps make it relatable. For example, the show is edited so that lots of
peoples faces appear in succession in order to highlight who the documentary will be
following but also to show that a lot of people can be affected by mental health issues. As
well as this it shows how mental health conditions affect a range of people not just a certain
social group.
Further to this the producers have purposively left in parts of footage that them getting ready
to answer a question or film a part of their experiences in order to give a sense of reality to it.
It may highlight to the audience that life is never perfect and that we dont always get to see
what goes on behind closed doors. This is something that is
important to the portrayal of mental health disorders because you
cant always tell by looking at someone if they suffer with a mental
health problems.
The most prominent camera work element to this
documentary is that everything is filmed by real
life people. As a result it gives a lot more
authenticity to what they are saying because they
have first hand experience. If the documentary
were to have been led by someone who hasnt
suffered with any of the conditions mentioned we
may not believe in what they are saying as much.
On top of this, we get access to see the peoples
most private moments when theyre at their best
and at their worst.
Even though the people are filming it they have
clearly been given some directions in regards to
filming other than pivotal moments in their life.
We see them pose questions surrounding the
shows topic in order to either reveal honest
opinions or give the audience knowledge
in recognising mental health issues.
The lack of narrator throughout the show puts the focus back
on the real peoples lives. The only way the show gives us
background knowledge is through writing being edited over
the top of a shot. This generally contains the persons name
and diagnosis or something related to their treatment. I think
this technique works really well as its just predominantly just
about their stories in their words.

Sound is a really key element in this documentary for a number of reasons. Firstly, it enables
us to gain some context for what we will be watching; in the beginning the people talk about
how BBC 3 asked us to film our lives to get inside our minds in order to understand what its
like to live with a mental health disorder. This is split up between a number of different
characters to introduce them. Also, in between the snippets there are short clips relating to
what has been said like a trailer of what is to come in the episode. Secondly, the music
chosen has clear links to the content of the documentary. Some of the songs have rhythms
that are fast paced and hectic, perhaps portraying what its like to live with mental health
conditions. Other songs have lyrics that correlate with the content, for example where is my
mind?. Thirdly, some of the voice clippings have been edited to overlap certain lengths of
footage in order to represent what the person is saying and this helps the audience to
understand what they mean.
In conclusion, this documentary is aimed at teenagers as the subject of mental health is
predominantly, though not exclusively, becoming something affecting young adults. As a
result, the BBC have decided to air this on BBC 3 because the channel is aimed at young
people. Therefore the target audience of this show is young people (15-21). As a response
to the target audience BBC 3 have made the show in-depth but easy to watch in order to
portray the messages and advice. Using people such as the people below make it relatable
because theyre of similar age to the target audience.