1: Documentary is a genre that aims to convey or interpret reality, but it does so through constructed versions of reality that reflect the filmmakers' points of view.
2: There are various styles of documentary, from expository documentaries that aim to directly inform audiences, to more observational styles like cinéma vérité that seek to minimize interference. More recent hybrid styles also exist.
3: The conventions documentaries use to convey information, like voiceovers, interviews, camerawork and editing, are part of how they creatively transform reality rather than simply record it. How these conventions are employed shapes the audiences' perspectives.
The document summarizes how the media products created for a music promotion use and develop conventions of real media products in the alternative rock genre. Specifically, the music video, magazine advertisement, and digipak incorporate the prominent use of black and white seen in other alternative rock media. Costumes, lighting, and locations in the video feature black and white. One scene in the video uses a point-of-view shot, which challenges conventions but fits the mood. The products also follow conventions like mixing narrative and band performance but feature unusual images like a doll to make them more original.
1. The document discusses film language and how it is used to create meaning in films. Film language includes aspects of cinematography, mise-en-scene, editing, sound, and more.
2. It then discusses three key stages in the filmmaking process: pre-production, production, and post-production. Pre-production includes writing, casting, and design. Production is the actual filming. Post-production is editing, sound, and final effects.
3. The document then discusses approaches to analyzing films, including macro analysis of aspects like genre, narrative, and representation, and micro analysis of specific production techniques used in scenes.
City of God A-Level Film Studies student booklet e-book workbook study guide Ian Moreno-Melgar
A detailed guide and workbook for City of God as part of the A-Level Film Studies Specification covering context, a detailed analysis of the film, examinations of Third Cinema and Cinema Novo as well as work on representation and aesthetics.
The document discusses how the media product adheres to and challenges documentary conventions. It follows standard conventions like interviews and archival footage to effectively portray a serious message. However, some shots challenge conventions by using unconventional camera angles. Statistics are incorporated to help audiences understand key information, and an intimate interview format directly engages viewers. The goal is to educate audiences while pushing the boundaries of traditional documentary styles.
This is a comprehensive guide to cinematography. With nearly 60 pages and over 17,000 words of content, you’ll not find a guidebook, resource or textbook that is as detailed, as insightful or as adaptable as this.
The booklet is separated into the generally regarded aspects of cinematography including shot size, camera angle, camera movement, light and colour but also includes detailed explorations of other aspects.
Each section includes detailed explanations, expert analysis and insight, dozens of tasks, dozens of images, links to hundreds of videos on YT and assessments.
This is also a great resource to copy information from and then paste into whatever work you need to set or deliver. This means that you can use this electronic text book as a guide for you as the teacher, as a resource for students to use in the classroom, to be broken up and used as individual worksheets, for revision, for homework, for remote learning or for students who are self-isolating and unable to be in lessons in person.
Written by an experienced teacher, examiner and CPD presenter with extensive experience in writing guides for film studies, I guarantee that this resource will prove to be an invaluable tool for you and your students and worth every penny.
The document discusses the production of a pop video to promote a fictional band called The Bloody Beetroots. It explores how the video uses and challenges conventions of real music videos. Key conventions referenced include featuring the artist, using various shot types and camera movements, and including a possible narrative structure. The video leaves the identity of the band ambiguous and ends without resolution to leave the audience wanting more. Additional materials like a digipack and magazine advertisement were also created to promote the band and video while maintaining a rebellious theme.
Our documentary uses conventions of real media in several ways:
1) In the introduction, we use quick shots and close-ups intervened by questions on a black frame, mimicking storytelling techniques used on Channel 4 docs.
2) Interviews are conducted without an interviewer, focusing on the subject, and others are positioned to the side to set the location.
3) The documentary has a simple white title and uses lighting to brighten the mood and engage audiences on this delicate subject.
Framing and shots are carefully chosen to focus on the subject and set the location while keeping audiences engaged throughout. Feedback has helped us improve the audio quality and remove inappropriate content to make the documentary more
The document provides details about the development of a film poster, short horror film, and film review for a student project on possession. For the poster, the student experimented with use of the color red which is not typically used in possession genre posters. Feedback validated this choice. The film incorporated conventions from research like low lighting and close ups but challenged genres by using male leads instead of female. The double-page review included images, a rating chart, and positive analysis based on audience feedback to persuade readers.
The document summarizes how the media products created for a music promotion use and develop conventions of real media products in the alternative rock genre. Specifically, the music video, magazine advertisement, and digipak incorporate the prominent use of black and white seen in other alternative rock media. Costumes, lighting, and locations in the video feature black and white. One scene in the video uses a point-of-view shot, which challenges conventions but fits the mood. The products also follow conventions like mixing narrative and band performance but feature unusual images like a doll to make them more original.
1. The document discusses film language and how it is used to create meaning in films. Film language includes aspects of cinematography, mise-en-scene, editing, sound, and more.
2. It then discusses three key stages in the filmmaking process: pre-production, production, and post-production. Pre-production includes writing, casting, and design. Production is the actual filming. Post-production is editing, sound, and final effects.
3. The document then discusses approaches to analyzing films, including macro analysis of aspects like genre, narrative, and representation, and micro analysis of specific production techniques used in scenes.
City of God A-Level Film Studies student booklet e-book workbook study guide Ian Moreno-Melgar
A detailed guide and workbook for City of God as part of the A-Level Film Studies Specification covering context, a detailed analysis of the film, examinations of Third Cinema and Cinema Novo as well as work on representation and aesthetics.
The document discusses how the media product adheres to and challenges documentary conventions. It follows standard conventions like interviews and archival footage to effectively portray a serious message. However, some shots challenge conventions by using unconventional camera angles. Statistics are incorporated to help audiences understand key information, and an intimate interview format directly engages viewers. The goal is to educate audiences while pushing the boundaries of traditional documentary styles.
This is a comprehensive guide to cinematography. With nearly 60 pages and over 17,000 words of content, you’ll not find a guidebook, resource or textbook that is as detailed, as insightful or as adaptable as this.
The booklet is separated into the generally regarded aspects of cinematography including shot size, camera angle, camera movement, light and colour but also includes detailed explorations of other aspects.
Each section includes detailed explanations, expert analysis and insight, dozens of tasks, dozens of images, links to hundreds of videos on YT and assessments.
This is also a great resource to copy information from and then paste into whatever work you need to set or deliver. This means that you can use this electronic text book as a guide for you as the teacher, as a resource for students to use in the classroom, to be broken up and used as individual worksheets, for revision, for homework, for remote learning or for students who are self-isolating and unable to be in lessons in person.
Written by an experienced teacher, examiner and CPD presenter with extensive experience in writing guides for film studies, I guarantee that this resource will prove to be an invaluable tool for you and your students and worth every penny.
The document discusses the production of a pop video to promote a fictional band called The Bloody Beetroots. It explores how the video uses and challenges conventions of real music videos. Key conventions referenced include featuring the artist, using various shot types and camera movements, and including a possible narrative structure. The video leaves the identity of the band ambiguous and ends without resolution to leave the audience wanting more. Additional materials like a digipack and magazine advertisement were also created to promote the band and video while maintaining a rebellious theme.
Our documentary uses conventions of real media in several ways:
1) In the introduction, we use quick shots and close-ups intervened by questions on a black frame, mimicking storytelling techniques used on Channel 4 docs.
2) Interviews are conducted without an interviewer, focusing on the subject, and others are positioned to the side to set the location.
3) The documentary has a simple white title and uses lighting to brighten the mood and engage audiences on this delicate subject.
Framing and shots are carefully chosen to focus on the subject and set the location while keeping audiences engaged throughout. Feedback has helped us improve the audio quality and remove inappropriate content to make the documentary more
The document provides details about the development of a film poster, short horror film, and film review for a student project on possession. For the poster, the student experimented with use of the color red which is not typically used in possession genre posters. Feedback validated this choice. The film incorporated conventions from research like low lighting and close ups but challenged genres by using male leads instead of female. The double-page review included images, a rating chart, and positive analysis based on audience feedback to persuade readers.
The document provides information on various elements of documentary films including:
- Types of footage and techniques used such as interviews, voiceovers, and reenactments.
- Common documentary structures like linear, open, and circular narratives.
- Elements of the "direct cinema" style including no interference and aiming for objectivity.
- Narrative theories from scholars like Propp, Barthes, and Todorov on codes and structures.
- An analysis of the opening of "Ready Steady Drink" discussing use of lighting, camerawork, editing and sound design.
- Consideration of topic ideas for their own student documentary, settling on teenage pregnancy.
The document summarizes how the student's media project followed conventions of real documentaries. It produced a 5 minute opening to a TV documentary on cuts to the UK's Education Maintenance Allowance. It used voiceovers, archival footage, interviews, and cutaways like real documentaries. It aimed to simplify complex topics, included opinions of students and experts, and focused on aesthetics and storytelling like the poetic mode of documentaries. Background music and appropriate visuals/settings were used to make the documentary look professional. The project scored highly and demonstrated understanding of documentary conventions.
Evaluation of 'stevie's wonders' - AS Media Courseworkalicerudwick
The document provides an analysis of a film opening titled "Stevie's Wonders". It summarizes how the opening uses, develops, and challenges conventions of real media products such as linear narrative, introducing characters, and use of titles and music. It also discusses how the opening represents male teenagers and the intended audience. The student learned about planning, editing software, music programs, filming technologies, and the importance of intriguing audiences in openings.
The Pornographic Perspective: Connecting the Dots between Pornography and Obs...Douglas Martin
IS PORNOGRAPHY OBSCENE?
That's the question the author attempts to answer once and for all in this entirely self-researched work exploring the nature of pornography and its effects on the mind.
Drawing parallels between political correctness and what he calls 'pornographic correctness,' the author deconstructs the pornographic mindset through detailed analysis of the various forms of perceptual manipulation, he contends, are built into the porno style of presentation.
Relying on evidence gathered from the study of 1000s of porn scenes dating back to the 1970s, the author's basic contention is that anything presented to the mind in an incomplete, distorted way can only take shape in the mind in an incomplete, distorted way, and therefore the only possible reason the pornographers could have for creating the confused, disordered patterns of (sexual) imagery found in pornography is to subject the viewer to the constant stimulus of a confused, disordered perspective, the 'Pornographic Perspective,' as he calls it.
He also contends that the logic underlying the porno style of presentation forms an integral part of a larger, media-based system comprising the 'mind control engineers' of America, that is, the Hollywood film and entertainment industry, the corporate news media and Madison Avenue. Together, he says, they have succeeded in creating on television and in the movies a phantasmagoric, knowledge-depleted view of the world that not only mirrors the life of our times in a highly distorted way but also implants in peoples' minds, especially children's minds, a false consciousness of the world around them.
He calls this false consciousness 'Media Reality' because it has become so powerful in the way it shapes our understanding of things that it really constitutes its own reality, with porn merely standing out as the most disturbed manifestation of that reality.
In the author's own words:
"By extending our range of awareness beyond the point where it could have ever evolved on its own or is even capable of sustaining itself without TV as a constant, daily presence in our lives, the mass media are able to manipulate our perceptions, and it is in this realm of 'extended consciousness' as I call it--the gap between 'TV-and-movie-created' perception and reality--that people can be manipulated and made to believe/disbelieve almost anything.
"Thankfully, the Internet is helping to close much of this perception gap, but THERE IS STILL NO WAY TO UNDERSTAND THE REALITY OF TODAY'S WORLD, AT LEAST IN AMERICA, WITHOUT REFERENCE TO THE WAY THE MASS MEDIA PRESENT IT TO US.
"Porn, therefore, should not be viewed as an isolated phenomenon but rather as an extension of the same artificial reality that the mass media have created on television and in the movies."
This document discusses the media product of a music video created for the fictional doom metal band "Quad Damage". It summarizes the planning, construction, and evaluation stages of the project. Research was conducted primarily online to determine conventions of the genre and how to market the band effectively. Feedback from test audiences was incorporated which improved the storyline clarity and pacing. Various media technologies like cameras, editing software, and design programs were used at different stages of the process.
This document summarizes the key things learned from creating a film opening sequence. It discusses using contrasting scenes to introduce the protagonist and intrigue audiences. It also covers introducing characters, developing titles in a subtle way, and using music to set the tone. The creator learned about planning considerations like mise-en-scene, representation, and shot effects. The opening needed to set the scene and genre while intriguing audiences to watch more.
The document provides details about the production of an opening sequence for a film. It discusses the ideas behind using shots of the protagonist's eye, exterior locations of past murders, and revealing the protagonist through mise-en-scene. It describes using a drum sound to introduce the protagonist and faster camera movements when an alarm goes off. Visual and audio changes are made to shots and music to create tension and unsettle the audience. Sound editing in Logic Pro is used to loop music under shots to extend its length.
The document discusses the media product of a music video created for the doom metal band Quad Damage. It summarizes the planning, construction, and evaluation stages of the project. Research was conducted online to choose inspirations from the film "They Live" and the band System of a Down. Feedback from classmates helped improve scenes and make the storyline clearer. Internet research, audience feedback on websites, and editing software informed decisions throughout the process. The final product effectively combined the music, video, and album packaging to represent the band's genre and message.
The document follows Aphra through a series of scenes in her bedroom and surrounding areas. It shows her applying makeup, smoking cigarettes, and covering herself in multiple nicotine patches. She seems distressed and strains to hear noises from other people upstairs. The document suggests Aphra is withdrawing from people and society and may be contemplating harming herself.
While big budget Hollywood films are common, some low budget films have achieved great box office success. The Conjuring (2013) had a budget of $20 million and grossed $318 million worldwide. Saw (2004) was made for $1.2 million and grossed $103 million globally. Napoleon Dynamite (2004) had a tiny $400,000 budget but grossed $46 million. The Blair Witch Project (1999) cost only $60,000 to make and grossed $248 million worldwide.
This document provides top tips for success in media studies. It offers advice on how to excel in media studies courses and achieve good grades. The tips likely focus on developing strong research, writing, and analytical skills that are key to media studies.
This document provides tips for improving screenplay writing in 3 sentences or less per tip. It advises using specific character and scene descriptions rather than vague ones. Action should show rather than tell through visual elements. Dialogue should advance the story and reveal character rather than just conveying information. Proper formatting for sluglines, capitalization, and parentheticals is also covered.
The document discusses how the current economic climate affects the British film industry. It states that while public funding has been cut, there is higher investment from wealthy private investors. It also notes that video on demand services are growing, allowing films to make money through ancillary sales. However, piracy continues to be a major issue, potentially reducing film revenues by 20-30%.
This document contains several poems exploring themes of isolation, depression, addiction, and inner turmoil. The poems are written from the perspective of a person struggling with their mental health and coping through substance abuse. They describe feelings of loneliness, self-loathing, and being overwhelmed by negative thoughts and emotions.
The song expresses feelings of loneliness and longing for a romantic partner. The singer worries about getting too close emotionally and says they would fall in love if they were not afraid. They describe dreaming of their potential partner's eyes, arms, voice, and other attributes. The singer questions how their feelings will progress and end, and how to stop wanting the relationship.
This document discusses documentary films and provides context on the genre. It covers several key points:
1) Documentary films aim to show "reality" but are in fact constructed versions of reality that reflect the filmmaker's point of view.
2) The genre has evolved over time, from early films that simply recorded events to styles like direct cinema in the 1960s that used handheld cameras and interviews.
3) Documentaries transform reality through choices like editing, narrative structure, and how information is presented verbally or visually. The end product reflects an interpretation of events rather than a simple recording of them.
This document discusses postmodern perspectives on documentaries and their construction of reality. It notes that while documentaries aim to represent everyday reality, they are inherently subjective due to choices made during filming, editing, and narration. Reality is staged and reconstructed through these documentary techniques. Postmodern thinkers like Baudrillard have criticized how documentaries create a "simulacrum" or hyperreal version of reality that blurs the lines between real and constructed. Ultimately, the document concludes that documentaries can never fully or objectively capture reality due to the many subjective decisions that shape them.
The document discusses issues with representing reality through documentaries. It argues that documentaries are inherently subjective representations rather than objective truths due to filmmaking choices like camera angles, editing, and narrative construction. While documentaries aim to represent everyday reality, their reality is a hyperreality shaped by the filmmaker's perspective. Postmodern theorists like Baudrillard critique documentaries, arguing reality is destroyed in the process of representation and the resulting film is a simulacrum detached from the original reality. However, documentaries that admit their outsider perspective may achieve a different kind of truth. Ultimately, the document concludes documentaries can never fully or accurately represent everyday reality due to their subjective nature.
The document defines documentaries as motion pictures that shape factual material for purposes of education or entertainment. It provides a brief history of documentaries from the first actualities filmed by the Lumiere brothers in 1895 to modern documentary films. It also outlines the six main types of documentaries: poetic, expository, observational, participatory, reflexive, and performative. Key features of documentaries are discussed such as their purpose to inform or educate through original footage and minimal crew involvement. Steps for producing a documentary are listed as selecting a topic, researching, writing a script, collecting images, constructing the presentation, adding music, and previewing and editing.
This document discusses the purpose, history, features, types, and conventions of documentary films. It notes that documentaries aim to present facts about real life using evidence like footage of actual events. Key features identified include observation, interviews, dramatization, mise-en-scene, exposition, inclusion of music/sound, and selection/construction during editing. The history of documentaries is traced from the first use of the term in 1926. Different types are outlined like fully narrated, fly-on-the-wall, mixed, self-reflective, docudrama, and docusoap styles. Conventions like a beginning, middle, and end structure are also mentioned.
1) Documentaries aim to report real events and situations using actual footage as evidence to provide insight without analysis.
2) Early documentaries from the 1930s established the genre by using real people and situations to give audiences a new view of real life.
3) While documentaries strive for authenticity, they require elements of reconstruction and creativity in their storytelling, which some argue challenges their objectivity.
The document provides information on various elements of documentary films including:
- Types of footage and techniques used such as interviews, voiceovers, and reenactments.
- Common documentary structures like linear, open, and circular narratives.
- Elements of the "direct cinema" style including no interference and aiming for objectivity.
- Narrative theories from scholars like Propp, Barthes, and Todorov on codes and structures.
- An analysis of the opening of "Ready Steady Drink" discussing use of lighting, camerawork, editing and sound design.
- Consideration of topic ideas for their own student documentary, settling on teenage pregnancy.
The document summarizes how the student's media project followed conventions of real documentaries. It produced a 5 minute opening to a TV documentary on cuts to the UK's Education Maintenance Allowance. It used voiceovers, archival footage, interviews, and cutaways like real documentaries. It aimed to simplify complex topics, included opinions of students and experts, and focused on aesthetics and storytelling like the poetic mode of documentaries. Background music and appropriate visuals/settings were used to make the documentary look professional. The project scored highly and demonstrated understanding of documentary conventions.
Evaluation of 'stevie's wonders' - AS Media Courseworkalicerudwick
The document provides an analysis of a film opening titled "Stevie's Wonders". It summarizes how the opening uses, develops, and challenges conventions of real media products such as linear narrative, introducing characters, and use of titles and music. It also discusses how the opening represents male teenagers and the intended audience. The student learned about planning, editing software, music programs, filming technologies, and the importance of intriguing audiences in openings.
The Pornographic Perspective: Connecting the Dots between Pornography and Obs...Douglas Martin
IS PORNOGRAPHY OBSCENE?
That's the question the author attempts to answer once and for all in this entirely self-researched work exploring the nature of pornography and its effects on the mind.
Drawing parallels between political correctness and what he calls 'pornographic correctness,' the author deconstructs the pornographic mindset through detailed analysis of the various forms of perceptual manipulation, he contends, are built into the porno style of presentation.
Relying on evidence gathered from the study of 1000s of porn scenes dating back to the 1970s, the author's basic contention is that anything presented to the mind in an incomplete, distorted way can only take shape in the mind in an incomplete, distorted way, and therefore the only possible reason the pornographers could have for creating the confused, disordered patterns of (sexual) imagery found in pornography is to subject the viewer to the constant stimulus of a confused, disordered perspective, the 'Pornographic Perspective,' as he calls it.
He also contends that the logic underlying the porno style of presentation forms an integral part of a larger, media-based system comprising the 'mind control engineers' of America, that is, the Hollywood film and entertainment industry, the corporate news media and Madison Avenue. Together, he says, they have succeeded in creating on television and in the movies a phantasmagoric, knowledge-depleted view of the world that not only mirrors the life of our times in a highly distorted way but also implants in peoples' minds, especially children's minds, a false consciousness of the world around them.
He calls this false consciousness 'Media Reality' because it has become so powerful in the way it shapes our understanding of things that it really constitutes its own reality, with porn merely standing out as the most disturbed manifestation of that reality.
In the author's own words:
"By extending our range of awareness beyond the point where it could have ever evolved on its own or is even capable of sustaining itself without TV as a constant, daily presence in our lives, the mass media are able to manipulate our perceptions, and it is in this realm of 'extended consciousness' as I call it--the gap between 'TV-and-movie-created' perception and reality--that people can be manipulated and made to believe/disbelieve almost anything.
"Thankfully, the Internet is helping to close much of this perception gap, but THERE IS STILL NO WAY TO UNDERSTAND THE REALITY OF TODAY'S WORLD, AT LEAST IN AMERICA, WITHOUT REFERENCE TO THE WAY THE MASS MEDIA PRESENT IT TO US.
"Porn, therefore, should not be viewed as an isolated phenomenon but rather as an extension of the same artificial reality that the mass media have created on television and in the movies."
This document discusses the media product of a music video created for the fictional doom metal band "Quad Damage". It summarizes the planning, construction, and evaluation stages of the project. Research was conducted primarily online to determine conventions of the genre and how to market the band effectively. Feedback from test audiences was incorporated which improved the storyline clarity and pacing. Various media technologies like cameras, editing software, and design programs were used at different stages of the process.
This document summarizes the key things learned from creating a film opening sequence. It discusses using contrasting scenes to introduce the protagonist and intrigue audiences. It also covers introducing characters, developing titles in a subtle way, and using music to set the tone. The creator learned about planning considerations like mise-en-scene, representation, and shot effects. The opening needed to set the scene and genre while intriguing audiences to watch more.
The document provides details about the production of an opening sequence for a film. It discusses the ideas behind using shots of the protagonist's eye, exterior locations of past murders, and revealing the protagonist through mise-en-scene. It describes using a drum sound to introduce the protagonist and faster camera movements when an alarm goes off. Visual and audio changes are made to shots and music to create tension and unsettle the audience. Sound editing in Logic Pro is used to loop music under shots to extend its length.
The document discusses the media product of a music video created for the doom metal band Quad Damage. It summarizes the planning, construction, and evaluation stages of the project. Research was conducted online to choose inspirations from the film "They Live" and the band System of a Down. Feedback from classmates helped improve scenes and make the storyline clearer. Internet research, audience feedback on websites, and editing software informed decisions throughout the process. The final product effectively combined the music, video, and album packaging to represent the band's genre and message.
The document follows Aphra through a series of scenes in her bedroom and surrounding areas. It shows her applying makeup, smoking cigarettes, and covering herself in multiple nicotine patches. She seems distressed and strains to hear noises from other people upstairs. The document suggests Aphra is withdrawing from people and society and may be contemplating harming herself.
While big budget Hollywood films are common, some low budget films have achieved great box office success. The Conjuring (2013) had a budget of $20 million and grossed $318 million worldwide. Saw (2004) was made for $1.2 million and grossed $103 million globally. Napoleon Dynamite (2004) had a tiny $400,000 budget but grossed $46 million. The Blair Witch Project (1999) cost only $60,000 to make and grossed $248 million worldwide.
This document provides top tips for success in media studies. It offers advice on how to excel in media studies courses and achieve good grades. The tips likely focus on developing strong research, writing, and analytical skills that are key to media studies.
This document provides tips for improving screenplay writing in 3 sentences or less per tip. It advises using specific character and scene descriptions rather than vague ones. Action should show rather than tell through visual elements. Dialogue should advance the story and reveal character rather than just conveying information. Proper formatting for sluglines, capitalization, and parentheticals is also covered.
The document discusses how the current economic climate affects the British film industry. It states that while public funding has been cut, there is higher investment from wealthy private investors. It also notes that video on demand services are growing, allowing films to make money through ancillary sales. However, piracy continues to be a major issue, potentially reducing film revenues by 20-30%.
This document contains several poems exploring themes of isolation, depression, addiction, and inner turmoil. The poems are written from the perspective of a person struggling with their mental health and coping through substance abuse. They describe feelings of loneliness, self-loathing, and being overwhelmed by negative thoughts and emotions.
The song expresses feelings of loneliness and longing for a romantic partner. The singer worries about getting too close emotionally and says they would fall in love if they were not afraid. They describe dreaming of their potential partner's eyes, arms, voice, and other attributes. The singer questions how their feelings will progress and end, and how to stop wanting the relationship.
This document discusses documentary films and provides context on the genre. It covers several key points:
1) Documentary films aim to show "reality" but are in fact constructed versions of reality that reflect the filmmaker's point of view.
2) The genre has evolved over time, from early films that simply recorded events to styles like direct cinema in the 1960s that used handheld cameras and interviews.
3) Documentaries transform reality through choices like editing, narrative structure, and how information is presented verbally or visually. The end product reflects an interpretation of events rather than a simple recording of them.
This document discusses postmodern perspectives on documentaries and their construction of reality. It notes that while documentaries aim to represent everyday reality, they are inherently subjective due to choices made during filming, editing, and narration. Reality is staged and reconstructed through these documentary techniques. Postmodern thinkers like Baudrillard have criticized how documentaries create a "simulacrum" or hyperreal version of reality that blurs the lines between real and constructed. Ultimately, the document concludes that documentaries can never fully or objectively capture reality due to the many subjective decisions that shape them.
The document discusses issues with representing reality through documentaries. It argues that documentaries are inherently subjective representations rather than objective truths due to filmmaking choices like camera angles, editing, and narrative construction. While documentaries aim to represent everyday reality, their reality is a hyperreality shaped by the filmmaker's perspective. Postmodern theorists like Baudrillard critique documentaries, arguing reality is destroyed in the process of representation and the resulting film is a simulacrum detached from the original reality. However, documentaries that admit their outsider perspective may achieve a different kind of truth. Ultimately, the document concludes documentaries can never fully or accurately represent everyday reality due to their subjective nature.
The document defines documentaries as motion pictures that shape factual material for purposes of education or entertainment. It provides a brief history of documentaries from the first actualities filmed by the Lumiere brothers in 1895 to modern documentary films. It also outlines the six main types of documentaries: poetic, expository, observational, participatory, reflexive, and performative. Key features of documentaries are discussed such as their purpose to inform or educate through original footage and minimal crew involvement. Steps for producing a documentary are listed as selecting a topic, researching, writing a script, collecting images, constructing the presentation, adding music, and previewing and editing.
This document discusses the purpose, history, features, types, and conventions of documentary films. It notes that documentaries aim to present facts about real life using evidence like footage of actual events. Key features identified include observation, interviews, dramatization, mise-en-scene, exposition, inclusion of music/sound, and selection/construction during editing. The history of documentaries is traced from the first use of the term in 1926. Different types are outlined like fully narrated, fly-on-the-wall, mixed, self-reflective, docudrama, and docusoap styles. Conventions like a beginning, middle, and end structure are also mentioned.
1) Documentaries aim to report real events and situations using actual footage as evidence to provide insight without analysis.
2) Early documentaries from the 1930s established the genre by using real people and situations to give audiences a new view of real life.
3) While documentaries strive for authenticity, they require elements of reconstruction and creativity in their storytelling, which some argue challenges their objectivity.
The document discusses the theory and history of documentaries. It explains that documentaries document real events and use techniques like voiceovers and interviews to create meaning and emotional responses for audiences. It introduces John Grierson, considered the father of British documentaries, who coined the term "documentary" and used the form to bring important social issues to viewers. John Corner is also discussed and he identifies key elements of documentaries like observation, interviews, dramatization, and exposition. Finally, different types of documentaries are outlined such as expository, poetic, and observational modes.
The document introduces the concept of documentaries by discussing their purpose and conventions. It notes that documentaries aim to inform or entertain about real situations and issues using actual evidence rather than fiction. They typically have a narrative structure and rely on techniques like interviews and commentary to present a particular interpretation of events and reveal things to audiences they may be unaware of. However, all documentaries involve some degree of selection, organization and focus that shape the representation of reality presented.
The document traces the evolution of documentary films from their origins with the Lumière brothers in 1895 to modern styles. It discusses early documentaries like Nanook of the North and Night Mail. Direct Cinema and Cinema Verité emerged in the 1950s-60s with a goal of portraying truth without interference. More recently, mockumentaries have parodied documentary conventions for comic effect.
The document discusses various techniques used in documentary films to present real events and their impact on spectators. It describes common documentary conventions like using natural lighting, interviews, voiceovers, and reconstructions to appear more authentic. However, it notes that these are just conventions and the selection and construction of footage can manipulate viewers just as fiction films do. Viewers must examine how 'real' events are presented and how that might influence their perspective.
This document discusses the purpose, history, and types of documentaries. It begins by explaining that documentaries are informative, factual, and aim to educate viewers about real people, events, and topics. John Grierson is identified as pioneering the documentary genre in the early 20th century by emphasizing creative treatments of actuality. The document then describes several types of documentaries including fly-on-the-wall, docu-soap, docudrama, self-reflexive, fully narrated, and mixed documentaries. Features like mise-en-scene, interviews, exposition, and dramatization are also examined.
The document outlines the theory and history of documentaries. It discusses that documentaries document real events and use evidence and voiceovers to create meaning and emotional responses for audiences. It introduces John Grierson, considered the father of documentary films, who coined the term "documentary" and used the format to bring important social issues to viewers. Finally, it covers five key elements of documentaries according to professor John Corner: observation, interviews, dramatization, mise-en-scene, and exposition.
A documentary aims to document and inform viewers about some aspect of reality for purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record. Early documentary films from the 1890s consisted of single shot moments captured on film to demonstrate novelty, while modern documentaries use various techniques like interviews, narration, observation, and reenactment to engage and educate audiences on their topics. Key documentary styles discussed are direct cinema, cinema verite, fully narrated, fly on the wall, mixed, self-reflective, reenactment of events, and docusoaps.
This document discusses different types of documentaries and how the genre has evolved. It defines documentaries as consisting of official documents or using real events and interviews to provide factual reports. There are six main documentary styles: observational, expository, participatory, reflexive, poetic, and performative. Modern documentaries have become more interactive, abstract in filming style, and hybridized. They appeal to wider audiences through techniques like non-diegetic sound and reenactments. Examples highlighted include experimental silent films from the 1920s and more recent films that expose controversial truths in unflinching ways.
The document summarizes the key elements and purposes of documentaries. It discusses that documentaries must be based on facts and use evidence such as footage and interviews to document real events. It also describes different types of documentaries such as fully narrated, observational, mixed, and docudramas. Additionally, it outlines narrative conventions for documentaries including having an exposition, beginning with intrigue, a complication middle, and a resolution ending.
The document discusses the various purposes and types of documentaries. Documentaries can aim to document, educate audiences about famous people's lives, entertain, inform, persuade, critique or observe real life. Key documentary types discussed include fly-on-the-wall which films discreetly, fully narrated which uses voiceover, mixed which uses interviews and narration, and self-reflexive where the filmmaker addresses the camera. A docu-drama reenacts real events but can only offer a fictional interpretation.
The document discusses postmodern views of documentaries. It notes that while documentaries aim to represent everyday reality, they are inherently subjective reconstructions due to choices made during filming and editing. Documentaries encourage a certain perspective and cannot perfectly capture reality. Their version of reality is mediated through the filmmaker's perspective. Postmodernists like Baudrillard argue that representations are staged and narrated, not capturing the real, and that reconstructed media saturates audiences who can no longer identify truth. Ultimately, documentaries only blur the line between reality and hyperreality due to their constructed nature.
The documentary analyzes the documentary "Flint Town" about the city of Flint, Michigan. It shows the depths of poverty through visuals of large amounts of abandoned property. The sounds emphasize crime and desperation. Earlier documentaries like "Roger and Me" showed the beginning of neighborhood decline through abandoned homes. Camera work draws attention more to residents' faces than police. The documentary conveys the mood of a city left to fend for itself without needed assistance.
Documentaries aim to document reality by informing, educating, and entertaining audiences on specific subjects or issues. They use various techniques like observations, interviews, dramatizations, and narration. Direct Cinema and Cinema Verite movements aimed to present social and political issues with minimal filmmaker involvement. There are different documentary styles including fully narrated, fly on the wall, mixed, self-reflexive, docu-drama, and docu-soap that combine elements like narration, interviews, and observations in different ways to convey meaning and advance arguments.
This document provides exam advice and discusses key topics to analyze for the film Vertigo. It recommends doing either the Critical Review/Writing question or the Specific question as they are easier than the Critical Approaches question. For Vertigo, some of the main debates that could be analyzed are how it is a film about film through identification and obsession, its portrayal of the gendered look and female object, use of recurring motifs and symbols, and interpretation of the Madeleine and Judy characters. It also lists debates around the spectator relationship to the character Scottie, use of locations, success as a thriller, problems from a narrative realist perspective, its undisputed status, and critical reception.
This document provides exam advice and discusses key topics related to analyzing the film Vertigo using different film theory approaches. It recommends doing the critical review/writing question first as it is easier than the critical approaches question. It then lists several common film theories like feminist, narrative, genre, and auteur theory. For the Vertigo analysis, it outlines the major debates around interpreting the film's narrative, characters, symbolism, locations, genre, and critical reception.
Documentaries claim to show reality but actually show a version of it from a certain point of view. There are three main modes of documentary: expository documentaries guide viewers through material using voiceovers, interviews and footage; interactive documentaries feature the filmmaker who actively engages with the material; and reflexive documentaries play with conventions and do not push a particular position, instead raising questions about objectivity and truth. Most documentaries contain elements of different modes and cannot be easily categorized.
The document outlines a revision session plan for a 2 hour and 45 minute exam divided into three sections: World Cinema, Spectatorship Topics, and Close Critical Study. Section A focuses on contextual and textual questions about world cinema films. Section B requires applying ideas about spectatorship and readings to documentary films. Section C involves critically analyzing a single chosen film and demonstrating awareness of critical debates around the film. The revision plan provides sample questions and approaches for successfully answering different question types in each exam section.
After Judy dyes her hair blonde, Scottie is still not satisfied because she has not styled her hair in the neat bun that Madeleine wore. He insists she put her hair up, demonstrating his desire to transform Judy into his idealized version of Madeleine. Judy allows herself to be controlled by Scottie in this way in order to gain his love. The scene illustrates Scottie's obsessive need to recreate Madeleine and Judy's willingness to become the object of his desires.
Wikus is an unlikable character who is clumsy, cowardly, and patronizing towards his Black subordinates. However, he is earnest and eager to please, which makes him somewhat sympathetic. The film effectively depicts the aliens as disgusting creatures that embody racist stereotypes, treating them like cockroaches and depicting them as addicted to cat food. It also "others" Nigerians in a similarly disturbing way. By making the audience view the aliens through a racist lens, the film highlights how racist ideologies function to dehumanize and objectify others.
While big budget Hollywood films are common, some low budget films have achieved great box office success. The Conjuring (2013) had a budget of $20 million and grossed $318 million worldwide. Saw (2004) was made for $1.2 million and grossed $103 million globally. Napoleon Dynamite (2004) had a tiny $400,000 budget but grossed $46 million. The Blair Witch Project (1999) cost only $60,000 to make and grossed $248 million worldwide.
The impact of digital technology on productionsmagdeburg
Digital technology has impacted film production, distribution, and exhibition in several ways. Films are easier and cheaper to make with smaller, lightweight digital cameras and editing software that allows for special effects. They can also be more easily distributed and promoted through online marketing campaigns and global releases of digital data files. While digital offers more viewing options on different screens and in 3D, it raises debates around piracy, image quality, and whether it helps or hurts independent films.
The influence of online fandom on film productionsmagdeburg
Fans actively engage with films they are passionate about by researching all aspects of production and sharing their thoughts, interpretations, and interviews with others online. Their predictable consumption habits allow corporations to target them through merchandise and marketing. The rise of the internet has given fans a global platform to immediately and freely express themselves, influencing film production, promotion, and distribution. Studios now directly engage fans through early screenings and social media to minimize risks and costs.
This document outlines potential exam questions for a film studies course focusing on documentaries and the spectator experience. The questions address how different types of documentaries provide varying spectator experiences, the importance of trusting the documentary filmmaker, how viewing context influences response, and whether spectators approach documentaries with more critical awareness than fiction films. Additional questions explore issues of manipulation in documentaries, the pleasures of viewing them, how real people/situations provide more challenge, and whether engaging spectators cinematically makes for the best documentaries.
This document contains notes from viewings of the documentary film Senna (2010) directed by Asif Kapadia. It discusses the film's narrative structure, use of footage, and techniques for manipulating spectator responses. The notes analyze how the film tells the story of Brazilian race car driver Ayrton Senna in a way that is similar to a fiction film, with Senna as the protagonist and identifiable scenes of drama and action. Key questions examine the relationship between the spectator and screen, the effect of point-of-view filming, the impact of including an antagonist in the narrative, and how the use of archive footage and non-diegetic music shape emotional responses to Senna and the inevitable conclusion of his life.
The document describes 6 modes of documentary filmmaking: expository, observational, interactive, reflexive, poetic, and performative. Expository documentaries use voiceovers and a straightforward structure to guide viewers, but can be overly didactic. Observational documentaries aim to record events objectively without influencing them, but may lack context. Interactive documentaries feature the filmmaker's engagement and perspective. Reflexive documentaries draw attention to documentary conventions. Poetic documentaries emphasize visuals and mood over explicit arguments. Performative documentaries construct subjective truths significant to the filmmaker.
This document discusses spectatorship and how different spectators can have varying emotional responses to the same film due to their personal contexts. A spectator's response is dependent on their own experiences, knowledge, ideologies, and how they relate the film to their own memories. The document also presents different types of readings spectators can have, from preferring the intended meaning to having an oppositional reading that does not recognize the intended meanings.
The document discusses the themes in the film District 9, including the segregation and lack of assimilation of aliens who are forced to live in a dystopian area called District 9 under harsh conditions, with humans from the MNU corporation controlling and possessing power over the aliens. A theme of xenophobia and racial division exists as the comfortable lives of humans are contrasted with the aliens' struggle to survive in District 9.
The aliens in District 9 are seen as repulsive scavengers forced into make-shift concentration camps where they live in squalid conditions without basic rights. As the film develops, the aliens are shown to be intelligent beings who care for their children and want to return home, representing racial divisions and functioning as an allegory for apartheid and segregated minorities. While physically distinct from humans, the aliens are ultimately victims who are "othered" and denied dignity through physical segregation and an inability to assimilate or leave Earth.
The document announces an Easter revision class to help students prepare for the FM2 exam, which is in approximately 4 weeks. It provides the date and location for the all-day revision session on Wednesday April 23rd in room 1CN03 to support students with revising for the 3 sections of the upcoming exam.
Article 3 the imposter -psychological journeysmagdeburg
The documentary film The Imposter examines the bizarre true story of a French man who in 1994 impersonated a missing American teenager. Interviews with the director Bart Layton and producer Dimitri Doganis express their ongoing surprise and confusion over how the imposter, Frederic Bourdin, was able to convincingly convince the teenage boy's family in Texas that he was actually their missing nephew. Both the filmmakers and audiences are left wondering who exactly was conned in this astonishing crime of impersonation.
Bart Layton's documentary The Imposter tells the incredible but true story of Frédéric Bourdin, a French man who convinced a Texas family he was their missing teenage nephew. Layton's film deliberately blurs the line between fact and fiction to unsettle viewers and get them to empathize with Bourdin at first. Layton interviewed Bourdin, who was easy to persuade to tell his story since he craves attention, as well as the victimized Texas family, who did not want to relive the ordeal but provided candid details of their deception. The film examines how Bourdin maintained the ruse for so long and what it says about how people can convince themselves of untruths.
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therealthing
studying documentary If you were asked to list your top five genres, it’s
unlikely that you would include documentary.
Jeremy Points, a former Head of Media, Film and
Communication Studies and now Media Studies Officer
for the WJEC Board, hopes to convince you that
documentary should be up there with the Sci-Fis and
the Horrors.
Documentary is a much maligned genre: it’s frequently a switch-off Pavel Pawlikowski, producer of several documentaries for BBC and
rather than a switch-on. Yet most people can mention a documentary director of the film, The Last Resort :
that’s really moved or fascinated them – on 9 /11 or Michael Jackson, I make no bones about manipulating my subjects. I do it through
for example – and large numbers of people have been caught up by choices in photography, sound, music, editing and narrative devices.
docusoaps like At Home with the Eubanks (C5) or The Osbournes Imagining Reality
(MTV and C4) and reality TV shows like Big Brother. So studying
Documentaries are, however, no different from any other form of
documentary shouldn’t be as bad as it first appears. Here are some
realism. Realism is simply a way of conveying a sense of reality for
of the reasons why:
an audience. There are several ways of doing this. EastEnders and
– it’s an enormously varied genre and is full of surprises; Hollyoaks both aim to convey a sense of ‘the real’ for their audiences:
– whatever you like, there’s probably a documentary on it; in Hollyoaks the camerawork changes from static to hand-held, the
– and – as your media teachers will say – it’s good for you, because pace of the editing is high and there are frequent editing effects and
it’s very revealing about most of the key issues in Media Studies. stylised lighting; in EastEnders, the camerawork is more static, the
pace of the editing is much slower and the lighting tends to look
Studying documentary … the key issue? more naturalistic. In other words, both soaps aim to convey a sense
of the real, but they do that in different ways.
At the centre of all work on documentary is realism: documentaries –
Realism: different ways of conveying a sense of the real for different
whether moving image or any kind of photojournalism – claim to
audiences.
show us ‘reality as it really is’. They don’t. They portray versions of
reality, which suggest points of view about what they’re showing.
The version of reality you see can be influenced by the documentary-
2:
Completed in the editing room
makers themselves (reflecting their points of view), as well as by the …
demands of the organisation and the audiences they are producing Dziga Vertov, Man with the Movie
the documentary for. Camera (1929)
Vertov, who used the phrase
‘Kino-pravda’ – ‘cinema truth’,
1:
The documentary shot …
borrowed later by French documentary maker, Jean Rouch as ‘Cinéma
Auguste Lumiere, Workers Leaving
Vérité’ – talked about his work as ‘putting facts together in a new
the Factory (1895)
structure’ so that people’s perceptions could be actively changed.
The first documentary? Real or
This film ‘put facts together’ about a day in the life of Leningrad – in
stage-managed?
the editing room.
The development of the genre: the main documentary
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Put formally, realism in fiction and documentaries is not a ‘window John Grierson, one of the pioneers of documentary-making, who
on reality’ but is a constructed and ideological representation of it – made his first documentaries in the 1920s and 1930s and who first
a representation which reflects points of view about the subject- popularised the term ‘documentary’, described it as ‘the creative
matter. You’ll be trying to understand what is involved in that in treatment of actuality’. This is a key definition worth thinking about
everything you explore through the documentaries you study. which suggests that documentary-makers do more than simply
Representation: the images we see on TV or in film, plus points of ‘record’ reality – they ‘treat’ it ‘creatively’.
view about them.
Ideologies: simply put, are points of view people like filmmakers and Transforming reality – starting with the
audiences hold which reflect their attitudes, values and beliefs. real
Documentary – the creative treatment ‘Reality’ is only the starting point of a documentary. In Media Studies
of actuality today, we tend to describe documentaries, like all forms of realism,
as ‘constructed’ versions of the real. But perhaps we ought to follow
What do you understand by ‘documentary’? Most people say that a the media writer John Corner who described documentaries as
documentary is factual rather than fictional or real rather than made- ‘transforming’ reality into something else – into a creative (and
up. A few ideas and definitions which seem to support that idea are constructed) film or a TV programme.
listed below.
• ‘Documentary is something to do with conveying information –
Documentary – the key questions
whether about topics, issues, events or life in the present or past … Once you’ve sorted out what a documentary is, you’ll be exploring
Based on fact, not fiction.’ (Oxford English Dictionary) the conventions of the genre through extracts and case studies. But
• The word comes from the French ‘document’, meaning a file. most importantly you’ll need to ask all the time how those
Hence, documentary is a kind of ‘fact file’, although the French word conventions are being used.
‘documentaire’ meant something like a travelogue, as early • Do they provide a window on reality or are they just a version of
documentaries took you to places you hadn’t been to. reality?
• ‘Something that documents part of life around us. It’s difficult to • Do they convey points of view about what you see and thus shape
define, as documentaries these days are so diverse.’ (Paul Hamann, the way you think and feel about people, events and issues?
former Head of Documentaries and History, BBC)
• ‘Documentary – the presentation of actual facts that makes them Exploring documentary conventions and
credible and telling to people at the same time.’ (William Stoff) how they’re used
• Other writers stress with their definitions that documentaries Conventions are the standard ingredients of a genre which
almost have a duty to raise social and political issues to keep audiences expect to see. Some documentaries work with the
societies informed. standard conventions whilst other stretch and challenge them.
Paul Rotha (contemporary of Grierson) in 1939: Although with most film and television genres you might list
The use of the film medium to interpret creatively and in social terms conventions in terms of settings, locations, lighting and costume
the life of the people as it exists in reality. (mise-en-scène), characters, narrative, icons and sound, I think it’s
more useful to group the conventions of documentary in terms of
Paul Wells in 1998: how information is conveyed. These conventions tend to vary slightly
A non-fiction text using ‘actuality’ footage, which may include live with different styles of documentary. Take first the main conventions
recording of events and relevant research material (i.e. interviews, of the standard ‘expository’ documentary – a documentary which
statistics, etc). This kind of text is usually informed by a particular aims to inform audiences about an event or issue, normally using a
point of view, and seeks to address a particular social issue which is presenter and/or voiceover to provide a commentary. I looked at a
related to and potentially affects the audience. documentary on Jennifer Lopez (shown on ITV) and found all of these.
What do you think? Should broadcasters produce more
documentaries on 9 /11, the recent Iraq war, the continuing political Verbal information and sound
tensions in Northern Ireland or more reality TV like Big Brother? – voiceover providing commentary and/or presenter;
– interviews (with experts, witnesses to events, ordinary people –
All those points are true but, to me, they only tell part of the story.
sometimes talking direct to camera, sometimes with the
What I think is crucial to all documentaries is what documentary-
interviewer in the picture);
makers do with the facts – the reality – that they are using as the
basis of their documentary.
4:
Cinéma Vérité/Direct or
Observational Cinema
3:
: The classic documentary
D.A. Pennebaker, Don’t Look Back
John Grierson, Night Mail (1936)
(1966)
– typical of what’s often called
Jean Rouch introduced handheld
‘expository’ documentary,
cameras and interviewed people on
because it aims to inform – was
the streets and called it Cinema Vérité. Pennebaker & Leacock used
in fact a means of selling the
the same techniques and called it direct or observational techniques.
efficiency of the Post Office. It also tried to give the impression that
As in this film on Bob Dylan, the style revolutionised documentary
Britain was one big happy family. Scenes in the Royal Mail sorting
making.
carriage were in fact shot in a studio.
styles – transformations of the real >>>>>>>>>>>>>>
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– mainly natural sound but music used frequently to create programmes which inform, educate and entertain. Documentaries
atmosphere or underline points. are an easy – and relatively cheap way – of informing and educating.
More than that, though, television companies need to attract
Visual information audiences – to justify the licence fee (if you’re the BBC) and to attract
– variety of locations appropriate to subject, chosen to illustrate advertisers (who provide your finance if you’re in independent
points: television or satellite). In addition to the need to provide a public
• archive footage • visual effects • still images. service, BBC2 and Channel 4 have a duty to cater for minority
audiences. As a result, the documentaries shown on those channels
Camerawork, lighting & framing – the way visual tend to be much less mainstream than BBC1 and ITV – although you
information is conveyed might notice that Channel 4 pioneered Big Brother to attract younger
• Camerawork – conventional use of establishing shots, generally audiences (also claimed by Channel 4 to be a minority not well
static camerawork for interviews, often direct to camera, some catered for).
steadicam (frequently within locations), some hand-held (often to
The new digital channels and satellite have different audiences again
heighten action or create a casual atomosphere).
and try to produce documentary programmes in keeping with their
• Framing – tends to look less set-up than films but often
channel identities. Satellite broadcasters, in fact, don’t have to
documentaries change between careful framing of interviewees
produce programmes which inform, educate and entertain at all as
and locations with sequences which are more casual.
they are not bound by national broadcasting laws. BSkyB recently
These conventions in fact developed as the genre itself developed – commissioned a reality TV show based on six men competing for the
from expository and investigative documentaries, to Cinéma Vérité attentions of a beautiful woman – except that the woman turned out
(or direct/observational cinema) in the late 50s and 60s, to fly-on- to be a man. As The Sun said (also owned by BSkyB owner Rupert
the-wall in the 70s and early 80s, to the performative in the 80s and Murdoch) this was a ‘reality show too far’. All of these points emerge
90s and to the various forms of hybrid (docusoaps and the reality TV by looking at the kinds of documentary produced by all the different
game show hybrids) of the 90s and into the present. Have a look at broadcasters – which is something you need to do.
the time-line of the main documentary styles running along the
bottom of the article to remind you. Putting it all together – editing and
positioning
Documentary – a developing genre?
You’re now familiar with the way conventions have developed
You can see many, if not all, of those different styles of documentary through different documentary styles and how documentaries
immediately you start to look at documentaries on TV and film today. frequently mix those styles. Now you need to come back to the basic
These are the ways in which the genre of documentary has question: how do documentaries creatively transform the real? Much
developed, reminding you that any genre is always open to change. of this comes down to editing – a crucial element in documentary.
Many documentaries, in fact, blend different styles. Think no further At its simplest, editing a documentary is about selecting what
than some of the send-ups: The Royle Family parodies both material will be included in the final documentary, organising it into
docusoaps and the fly-on-the-wall documentary popular in the 1970s something that will interest the audience (turning the footage into a
and 80s. The handheld camerawork with natural or amateur lighting, narrative) and ending up with an interpretation of the subject of the
common in lots of documentaries and used memorably in the mock- documentary. Documentary-makers tend to film about ten times the
documentary horror film, The Blair Witch Project has its roots in a amount of material which is finally used (in some cases more). Right
documentary movement called ‘Cinéma Vérité’ in France, and direct away there are two ways in which documentaries transform material:
or observational cinema in America. Interestingly, this came to
prominence in the late 1950s and early 1960s as a result of new – they convert the material into a story
lighter-weight cameras (effectively the first steadicams). It’s a good – they only show part of the ‘whole’ picture.
example of the way technology prompts a particular camera style. What they also do is edit together material to make a point.
Different styles – different audiences Michael Moore’s recent Bowling for Columbine (2002), a
documentary on how two school students shot schoolchildren in the
Genres are not only dynamic, reflecting changes in society, culture small town of Columbine USA, is full of this kind of editing. One
and technology, they also represent a balance between the profit sequence starts with an interview with an organic farmer in Michigan,
motives of the industry and the enjoyment of the audience. James Nichols. After this first sequence of Nichols innocently
First of all, there’s a good reason why documentaries are shown on introducing himself on his farm, we are shown archive footage of his
television at all. The laws governing terrestrial broadcasting in Britain arrest for involvement in the Oklahoma bombing and the killing of
demand that broadcasters provide a public service and show
6:
Seriously Investigating
Panorama, BBC – Richard
5:
Fly-on-the-wall Dimbleby presenting
Roger Graef, The Police The investigative documentary – like
The 70s and 80s brought the expository – has tended to be
cameras into people’s living associated with TV and aims to
rooms and workplaces (like investigate issues. Despite looking balanced, they generally convey a
flies on the wall). Do they particular point of view about the issues they investigate.
simply observe?
The development of the genre: the main documentary
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167 people. Timothy McVeigh was executed, James Nichols’ brother
was imprisoned but there was insufficient evidence against James
Nichols himself. Michael Moore comments that the ‘Feds didn’t have
the goods on him’. We then see a further sequence of James Nichols,
,follow it up:
MoreMediaMag:
Find out more about documentary on
Biggie and Tupac from MM1
full of close-ups and including cutaways of an expressionless Michael
Michael Jackson from MM4
Moore, nervily defensive, accusing his ex-wife of spreading rumours
Pennebaker and Hegedus; Big Brother 4 ; How to construct a
about him. The editing – and Michael Moore’s questions – expose
radio documentary from MM6
him as being at least stupid and at worst a terrorist bomber.
The editing has, in other words, positioned the audience to adopt a Further reading
particular point of view. This is what documentaries do all the time – Vivienne Clark, James Hunt and Eileen Lewis: Key Concepts in
and something you’ll be able to uncover by asking how documentary Media Studies, Longmans (2003) – good overview section on
conventions are used. Below are questions you can ask when you’re documentary
exploring your own documentaries. Jo Wilcock: Documentaries: A teacher’s guide/Classroom
Resources Auteur Publications (revised 2003)
How documentaries use conventions Paul Wells: ‘The Documentary Form’ in Introduction to Film
Studies, Ed. Jill Nelmes, 2nd edition, Routledge (1999) – good
The verbal overview with case studies on Robert Flaherty, Humphrey
Jennings, Leni Riefenstahl, Frederick Wiseman and Hoop
• Does the presenter/voiceover attempt to persuade audiences of a
Dreams / When We Were Kings
point of view?
Jon Ronson: ‘The egotists have landed’ in Sight and Sound ,
• What kind of language is used – emotive, guiding audiences to
Nov 2002 – on ‘performative’ documentary and Bowling for
think in a particular way?
Columbine – articles can be reprinted from the Bfi website –
• What kinds of interviewees are used? Ordinary people /experts? Do
www.bfi.org.uk
we believe some more than others?
Michael Moore and Nick Broomfield have their own
• Are music or sound effects used to suggest a point of view about
sites:www.michaelmoore.com
the subject?
www.nickbroomfield.com
The visual
• If there’s a presenter/people being interviewed, what image is
given to them and why (dress, physical image, body language,
backdrop against which they’re filmed)?
• How does camerawork affect your point of view about what/who is
being filmed?
• If visual effects are used, how do they affect your point of view
about the subject?
• How is editing used? (Length of shots/scenes, placing contrasting
scenes next to one another to make a point, cutaways.) Are your
attitudes to people and the subject affected by editing?
• How does turning the subject of a documentary into a ‘story’ affect
the subject?
The documentary style
• Does the documentary style affect how you think about the people
portrayed/the subject of the documentary? M M
8:
The first hybrids
Documentary meets soap
Jeremy Points is the Subject Officer for Media Studies for WJEC.
opera – to increase television
ratings?
The Office – a send-up of the
docusoap, focusing on key
7:
Enter the performers characters who talk direct to camera. A ‘hybrid’ documentary,
Michael Moore, Bowling for where at least two genres are mixed.
Columbine
The 80s and 90s brought the
performers: Nick Broomfield and
9:
Michael Moore, who took centre T he current phase of hybrids:
stage in their own documentaries. Both have produced documentaries documentary meets soap meets
recently: Michael Moore’s brilliant Bowling for Columbine (2002), game show and even talk show
based on the killing of high school students in Columbine, Colorado in – definitely increasing ratings
April 1999 and raises questions about US gun laws. Nick Broomfield The more recent reality TV
has returned to an earlier subject, Aileen Wournos, a female serial makes a hybrid out of
killer who was recently executed and for whom Nick Broomfield documentary, soap opera, game show and even talk show, when
himself was called in as a witness. Aileen: T he Selling of a Serial Killer participants are interviewed.
(released 2003).
styles – transformations of the real >>>>>>>>>??????
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