2. WHAT IS A DOCUMENTARY
A Documentary aims to document a topic to give the audience a better
understanding of this certain topic, which has lead to documentaries
being known as informative and educative as well as entertaining.
John Grierson defined the term ‘documentary’ and he defined it as ‘the
creative treatment of actuality’. He worked for the General Post Office
Unit.

3. FULLY NARRATED
A fully narrated documentary has a voice over for a better understanding
for the audience. It uses direct address and it anchors the footage to
make sense of it to the audience watching the documentary.
Fully narrated documentaries use the voice of 'God' and so people take
what they hear as the truth. Wildlife documentaries are most common
fully narrated documentaries.

4. FLY ON THE WALL
This type of documentary involves watching the movements of people and
is often unobtrusive and the participants of the documentary are usually
interviewed, using an off-camera voice.
Fly on the wall documentaries are influenced by cinema verite which
captures what seems like a natural setting to the audience however
editing, camerawork and the way the setting is arranged all affect what
it is the audience is shown. This type is very much focused on
observation.

5. MIXED
A mixed documentary involves a combination of interviews, observation and
narratives, as well as archived and actual footage.
The narrator links the story together, which advances the narrative.
Within a mixed documentary as the journalist is speaking pictures continue over it.
A strength of mixed documentaries it that it is representing an objective reality
and not just a selective construction.

6. SELF-REFLEXIVE
This is when the subject of the documentary is followed around by the camera
and stops often to acknowledge the camera.
Self reflexive documentaries have been criticised by an audience as they can be
said to be drawing attention to themselves for publicity.

7. DOCUSOAP
A docusoap is a hybrid genre and is observation.
It involves following a person or a group of people around in a particular
job or place over a long period of time.
There is a lot of dispute over whether a docu-soap is actually a
documentary or not.
However, documentaries are based on eavesdropping but are extremely
popular both with the audience and documentary makers as they
require no cast, very little crew and are cheap to make.

8. DOCUDRAMA
A docudrama is a genre of documentary which features dramatised re-enactments
of actual events.
They show events what have happened at the time.
However although docu-drama's claim to relive the truth critics claim that they can
only ever hope to deliver fiction because they cant really know what went on or
how people acted or felt

10. OBSERVATION
• The observation in a documentary is when the
programme makers pretend that the camera is
hidden or unseen.
• The footage is then used to back up the film
makers exposition because it places the audience
in the role of witnessing events.

11. INTERVIEWS
During or after a quote has been
made by the interviewee, the director
cuts away to observational or archive
footage that fits with the response
given.
The questions that are asked
to the subject are not heard
on screen.
The interviewee is questioned but
answers to the person who is
interviewing them, so they are not
aiming their answers at the
audience by looking into the
camera.
Interviews are often set up in a
particular format that is all relevant to
the context of the documentary.

12. DRAMATISATION
It is acted and put
together to make it
look like real life
events.
The body language by the subjects in the scene
seems to be real in front of the camera.
Even in observation there is
some form of dramatisation.
Used to portray
people and events

13. MISE EN SCENE
All shots are carefully composed to contain what they want the audience to
see.
MISE EN SCENE
The director focuses on the setting of the interview as well as the lighting
contrast in different shots or even the framing of the shot.
Costume Make up and hair
Lighting Setting Props

14. EXPOSITION
The exposition is the line of the argument that the
creator of the documentary is trying to get across.
It is essentially what
the documentary is
saying.
Some expositions are direct and some are
indirect.