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Documentary Now!

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Documentary Now!
GenreMockumentary
Created by
Directed by
  • Rhys Thomas
  • Alex Buono
Presented byHelen Mirren
Starring
  • Fred Armisen
  • Bill Hader
Theme music composerJosh Moshier
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons2
No. of episodes14 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producers
  • Fred Armisen
  • Bill Hader
  • Seth Meyers
  • Lorne Michaels
  • Rhys Thomas
  • Andrew Singer
Production companyBroadway Video
Original release
NetworkIFC
ReleaseAugust 20, 2015 (2015-08-20) –
present

Documentary Now! is an American mockumentary television series on IFC, created by Saturday Night Live alumni Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers, and director Rhys Thomas, with Armisen and Hader starring in the series and Thomas co-directing. The series spoofs celebrated documentary films by parodying the style of each documentary with a similar, but fictitious, subject. Helen Mirren serves as host for the series, which is executive produced by Armisen, Hader, Meyers, Thomas and SNL creator Lorne Michaels. The episode "DRONEZ: The Hunt for El Chingon" premiered online on August 10, 2015,[1] followed by the regular television premiere on August 20.[2] The series has been renewed through season 3.[3]

Development

On March 20, 2014, the series was announced under the working title American Documentary.[4] Documentary Now! parodies well-known documentaries—such as The Thin Blue Line and Grey Gardens—but with fictitious subjects.[5] British actress Helen Mirren serves as the host for the series, to add "gravitas" to each documentary. Each of the seven episodes is shot using different styles of documentary filmmaking, and "honors some of the most important stories that didn't actually happen."[6]

The idea for the series was born on Saturday Night Live, where Armisen, Hader and Meyers were former cast members; in 2013, Armisen and Hader portrayed faded British punk rock stars in a segment, Ian Rubbish and the Bizzaros: History of Punk, made in the style of This Is Spinal Tap.[7]

Premise

Within the universe of the show itself, Documentary Now! is a long-running (50 years) news magazine for documentaries. Mirren appears at the beginning of each episode to introduce the documentary that the audience is about to see.

Hader and Armisen usually play fictionalized versions of real characters from each episode's respective documentary. Otherwise, the cast for each episode is entirely different than the one preceding it. The end credits are also made to appear as though they are the credits for the documentary, and not for the show itself.

Production

The producers made it a priority to realistically spoof famed documentaries, even going so far as to track down the original 1920s-era camera lenses used to film Nanook of the North (1922).[5] They declined to do another Spinal Tap-type mockumentary and consciously avoided any similarities in editing or style. “Spinal Tap set such a great precedent that we had to watch out for repeating any of those same beats," Armisen said. "It’s one of the greatest movies ever.”[8]

The six-episode order limited the first season of the show, Seth Meyers told Collider.com, stating that they were not able to spoof Michael Moore documentaries, or the phenomenally successful HBO miniseries The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst. “The Jinx happened a little too late for us," Meyers said of the miniseries, which aired in February and March 2015. "We almost tried to pull it off. We talked a lot about that kind of documentary, where the filmmaker sets out to make a documentary, and then, very slowly, it becomes clear the documentary is about himself.”[8]

Two of the episodes were shot in Iceland and The Hunt for El Chingon was filmed in Tijuana.[8]

Reception

In its year-end roundup, the New York Times named Documentary Now! as one of "The Best TV Shows of 2015".[9] "This series, introduced in August," wrote Times critic Neil Genzlinger, "consists not of actual documentaries but of parodies of actual documentaries. It sure is funny, though." The series has earned an 88% rating on the review site Rotten Tomatoes.[10]

Cast

Episodes

Season 1 (2015)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten bySubject parodiedOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
11"Sandy Passage"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoSeth MeyersGrey GardensAugust 20, 2015 (2015-08-20)0.16[11]
22"Kunuk Uncovered"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoSeth MeyersNanook RevisitedAugust 27, 2015 (2015-08-27)0.25[12]
33"DRONEZ: The Hunt for El Chingon"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoDuffy Boudreau, Bill Hader & Rob KleinVICE News documentaries[14]September 3, 2015 (2015-09-03)0.11[15]

  • This episode was originally scheduled to air August 27, but IFC postponed its release due to a scene in which two journalists are killed on-camera, this following the live broadcast of two television station employees' murders in Virginia one day earlier. The episode "Kunuk Uncovered" aired in its place. "Dronez" was previously available online via the Vice website, which supported the episode, but later pulled it per an agreement with IFC.[13]
44"The Eye Doesn't Lie"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoBill Hader & John MulaneyThe Thin Blue LineSeptember 10, 2015 (2015-09-10)0.09[16]
55"A Town, a Gangster, a Festival"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoSeth Meyers & Fred ArmisenHollywoodSeptember 17, 2015 (2015-09-17)0.16[17]
66"Gentle & Soft: The Story of the Blue Jean Committee, Part 1"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoFred Armisen, Bill Hader & Erik KenwardHistory of the EaglesSeptember 24, 2015 (2015-09-24)0.11[18]
77"Gentle & Soft: The Story of the Blue Jean Committee, Part 2"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoFred Armisen, Bill Hader & Erik KenwardHistory of the EaglesSeptember 24, 2015 (2015-09-24)0.10[18]

Season 2 (2016)

No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleDirected byWritten bySubject parodiedOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
81"The Bunker"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoJohn MulaneyThe War RoomSeptember 14, 2016 (2016-09-14)0.12[19]
92"Juan Likes Rice & Chicken"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoSeth MeyersJiro Dreams of SushiSeptember 21, 2016 (2016-09-21)0.11[20]
103"Parker Gail's Location Is Everything"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoJohn Mulaney & Bill HaderSwimming to CambodiaSeptember 28, 2016 (2016-09-28)0.11[21]
114"Globesman"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoSeth MeyersSalesmanOctober 5, 2016 (2016-10-05)0.13[22]
125"Final Transmission"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoFred Armisen & Erik KenwardStop Making SenseOctober 12, 2016 (2016-10-12)0.120[23]
136"Mr. Runner Up: My Life as an Oscar Bridesmaid, Part 1"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoJohn Mulaney & Bill HaderThe Kid Stays in the PictureOctober 26, 2016 (2016-10-26)0.062[24]
147"Mr. Runner Up: My Life as an Oscar Bridesmaid, Part 2"Rhys Thomas & Alex BuonoJohn Mulaney & Bill HaderThe Kid Stays in the PictureOctober 26, 2016 (2016-10-26)0.090[24]

References

  1. ^ Locker, Melissa (August 7, 2015). "Documentary Now! Takes You Inside the Republican Debates". IFC. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  2. ^ Whitney Friedlander (2015-05-11). "'Documentary Now' IFC Dates Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, Seth Meyers Show". Variety. Retrieved 2015-06-19.
  3. ^ Porter, Rick. "TV shows renewed for 2016 and beyond". TVbytheNumbers. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  4. ^ "IFC Unveils New Comedies From Fred Armisen, Seth Meyers & Rob Huebel As Part Of 2015 Slate". Deadline.com. March 20, 2014. Retrieved June 19, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Saad, Nardine (July 31, 2015). "Hader, Armisen, Meyers comedy 'Documentary Now!' spoofs their favorite docs". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  6. ^ "About". IFC. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  7. ^ Snierson, Dan (2015-05-15). "Bill Hader and Fred Armisen channel Grey Gardens in IFC's Documentary Now!". EW.com. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  8. ^ a b c Radish, Christina (August 7, 2015). "13 Things to Know about DOCUMENTARY NOW! Starring Fred Armisen and Bill Hader". Collider.com. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  9. ^ James Poniewozik, Mike Hale and Neil Genzlinger, "Best TV Shows of 2015," The New York Times, December 13, 2015.
  10. ^ "Documentary Now! (2015)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved 2016-04-25.
  11. ^ "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Thursday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 8.20.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved 2015-08-24.
  12. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (August 28, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Thursday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 8.27.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved 2015-09-10.
  13. ^ "IFC’s ‘Documentary Now!’ Delays Episode Due to Virginia Shooting," from Variety, 8/27/2015
  14. ^ "Jack Black as 'Dronez' Founder in IFC's 'Documentary Now!'". VICE News. YouTube. July 30, 2015. Retrieved August 8, 2015.
  15. ^ Metcalf, Mitch (September 4, 2015). "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Thursday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 9.3.2015". Showbuzz Daily. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
  16. ^ "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Thursday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 9.10.2015". Showbuzz Daily. 2015-09-11. Retrieved 2015-09-23.
  17. ^ "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Thursday Cable Originals (& Network Update): 9.17.2015". Showbuzz Daily. 2015-09-18. Retrieved 2015-09-23.
  18. ^ a b Metcalf, Mitch. "SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 100 Thursday Cable Originals ( & Network Update): 9.24.2015". ShowBuzzDaily. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  19. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 9.14.2016". Showbuzz Daily. 2016-09-15. Retrieved 2016-09-17.
  20. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 9.21.2016". Showbuzz Daily. 2016-09-22. Retrieved 2016-09-24.
  21. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 9.28.2016". Showbuzz Daily. 2016-09-29. Retrieved 2016-09-30.
  22. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.5.2016". Showbuzz Daily. 2016-10-06. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  23. ^ "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.12.2016". Showbuzz Daily. 2016-10-13. Retrieved 2016-10-15.
  24. ^ a b "UPDATED: SHOWBUZZDAILY's Top 150 Wednesday Cable Originals & Network Finals: 10.26.2016". Showbuzz Daily. 2016-10-27. Retrieved 2016-10-30.
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