Mockumentary Screenplay Project

A feature film screenplay in the mockumentary genre—fictional comedy shot in documentary style.

What This Is

This project uses Claude Code to develop a mockumentary screenplay from concept through pitch-ready materials. The workflow is supported by specialized skills that handle each phase of development.

Current Status

Phase: Concept Development (in progress)

This project is in active development. I'm currently working through the initial concept phase—defining the satirical target, establishing the world, and shaping the premise.

What you can explore now: dev/concept.md — the working concept document where the mockumentary's foundation is being developed.

Research artifacts: dev/research/ contains assets and artifacts created along the way—workflow diagrams, reference materials, and exploratory work produced during development. Worth a look if you want to see the process behind the project.

As the project progresses through subsequent phases (characters, structure, screenplay, revision, pitch), additional artifacts will appear in their respective directories.

The Genre

Mockumentary presents fictional stories as if they were real documentaries. The comedy comes from:

• Deadpan tone: Characters are completely earnest about absurd situations
• Talking head interviews: Characters speak directly to camera, often revealing more than they intend
• The gap: What characters believe about themselves vs. what we see
• Documentary conventions: Found footage, B-roll, camera acknowledged by subjects

Reference films: This Is Spinal Tap, Best in Show, The Office, Parks & Rec, What We Do in the Shadows

Project Phases

File Structure

project-root/
├── README.md              ← You are here
├── Claude.md              ← Project state tracker
├── script/
│   ├── screenplay.fountain
│   ├── treatment.md
│   └── outline.md
├── characters/
│   └── [character-name].md
├── pitch/
│   ├── logline.txt
│   ├── synopsis.md
│   ├── one-pager.md
│   └── deck/
└── dev/
    ├── concept.md
    ├── research/
    └── revisions/

How to Work

1. Track progress in Claude.md by checking off phases as you complete them
2. Work conversationally for creative exploration (concept, characters, dialogue)
3. Use plan mode only when stepping back to assess structure or troubleshoot
4. Document decisions in dev/ so context carries across sessions

Skills

This project uses six specialized skills:

• mockumentary-concept — Premise and satirical angle development
• mockumentary-characters — Character creation with documentary voices
• mockumentary-structure — Outlining with mockumentary conventions
• mockumentary-screenplay — Fountain format screenplay writing
• mockumentary-revision — Polish and punch-up passes
• mockumentary-pitch — Pitch materials creation

Skills trigger automatically based on what you're working on.

Getting Started

Begin by developing your concept in dev/concept.md:

1. What's being satirized?
2. Why is a documentary crew there?
3. What's at stake?
4. Who are the key characters and what are their blind spots?

Then progress through phases, updating Claude.md as you go.