A2 media studies- types of documentary

1. INFLUENCES ON
DOCUMENTARIES

2. FLY-ON-THE-WALL (CINEMA VERITE)
This type is also called ‘Institutional Documentaries’.
The camera is ‘unseen’ or ignored and simply records real events as they
happen. There is often only a small amount of narration, generally
unbiased, leaving the audience to their own conclusions.
This is a popular genre which is often informative, humorous and
sometimes critical in the way of which the places of work being filmed,
such as airports or hospitals are represented.
More recently these documentaries have given way to the popular
docusoap genre because of TV stations wanting more ratings which
docusoaps (for example, Big Fat Gypsy Wedding) obtain more than full
documentaries.

3. DIRECT CINEMA
A style of documentary produced in the 1960’s.
It came about as a result of widespread availability of cheap, portable
lightweight audio-visual equipment.
Aims to achieve objectivity; no biased narration, simply fly-on-the-wall
filming of events and people, leaving it up to the audience to draw
conclusions.
Approach is in direct contrast to the tradition of the ‘Authored
Documentary’, which is clearly the opinion of the individual,

4. DIRECT CINEMA
Rules of direct cinema:
 Documentaries were not to include
interviews.
 There were to be no rehearsals prior to
filming.
 No staged events or commentary.
 No film lights.
 No dissolve edits to be used.
Cinema verite:
 Style of European film-making in the
early 1960’s using documentary
techniques such as hand-held camera
to convey life in as realistic way as
possible.
 Similar to direct cinema but cinema
verite believed that the film maker’s
opinions should be expressed – art as
propaganda. Cinema verite also used
interviews whereas direct cinema
didn’t.
 Linked to a ‘Social Realist’ tradition in

5. VIDEO DIARIES
This style again is descended from Direct Cinema – seen by audiences as
reliable and truthful as the subject is filming themselves.
An off-shoot of this are the documentaries which use surveillance
technology as entertainment (infotainment), with audiences enjoying
their voyeuristic nature.

6. THEATRICAL DOCUMENTARIES
Film documentaries are released in the cinema and are traditionally
about pop stars or sports personalities.
There is a new trend for provocative film documentaries where that
subjects are fronted by a charismatic narrator who appears on screen.
These are a return to the concept of the ‘Authored Documentary’ where
the piece is clearly scripted and presents the viewpoint of a particular
individual.

7. DOCUDRAMA
This type is a re-enactment of events as though they actually happened,
adding more drama on some occasions to make it more interesting to
the audience.
It’s a mixture of a docusoap and a docudrama is mainly scripted, so it is
made to be more entertaining, for example, Made in Chelsea.
It takes ordinary, common experience and looks at it through the eyes of
the public. Can be open to opinions from the audience because of this.

8. MOCKUMENTARY
A mockumentary is a parody of a documentary which can be done for different
purposes, such as:
 Parodying the genre
 Parodying an area in life
 Parodying both
They can be used to take current events and issues and turn them into a joke, or can be
used to make fiction look like reality. An example of this would be What We Do in the
Shadows, a mockumentary film about vampires flat-sharing in New Zealand.

9. DOCUSOAP
These documentaries follow the lives of
individuals, usually with designated
occupations and are very popular. ‘The
Cruise’ averaged 11 million viewers.
Common characteristics are:
 Emphasis on entertainment rather than
instruction.
 Based around personalities who often ‘play
up’ to and talk directly to the camera. They
often become celebrities themselves.
 They focus on everyday lives and problems
rather than social issues.
 Some scenes are set-up and selective
editing is often used to portray the
personalities or themes in a certain way.
They are called docusoaps because they
are similar to soap operas in terms of:
 Fast editing
 Multi-strand narratives
 Part of a series and often end on a
cliffhanger ‘next week on…’

10. FULLY NARRATED
These are documentaries that include a voice over to further explain the events,
information and facts to the audience. The voice over is used to narrate the visual
elements and reminds the audience of the main exposition of the documentary.
The most common example of these are nature documentaries, due to the fact any
other style would be hard to achieve. This then causes an entertaining way to learn
about nature based off facts and observations.

11. MIXED
Uses a combination of interviews, observations and narration to continue
the topic or the argument.
Archival material and actual footage will be used, as well as sometimes
graphics to make it feel more interactive towards the audience.
More recently more documentaries are a mixed style as it keeps the
attention of the viewer.

12. SELF-REFLEXIVE
This is when the documentary acknowledges the presence of the
camera and often speaks to the documentary maker.
They will follow a certain group or person around with hand-held camera
shots making it more personal and look more amateur.

13. DRAMA
These are documentaries that explore a social issue or draw attention to
a miscarriage of justice but they are scripted and acted like dramas.
The documentary will be based on a real life event but turned into a film
like experience with actors playing the subject of the documentary. The
stories may also be edited to make it more appealing to a wider
audience.