The document discusses the various purposes that a documentary can serve, including to inform audiences, provide factual information to educate viewers, entertain audiences to maintain their interest, educate people on a subject, persuade viewers by manipulating their opinions on a topic, raise awareness of issues that may not be widely known, provide multiple perspectives objectively, and investigate topics through a balanced argument. The main purpose of the documentary being planned by the author is to entertain audiences to maintain their interest, as well as to educate and raise awareness of the topic factually.

1. George Coombes
Purpose of a
Documentary
Informative
 Informs audience –
provides
knowledge of
subject.
Factual
 Provides statistics and
general correct knowledge
– helps to educate and
inform the audience.
Entertain
 Maintain audience interest
through comedy aspects
for example. Disneyfication
– appealing to the masses.
Educate
 Provides
information on
subject – what
can the audience
learn from this?
Persuade
 Manipulate the
audience’s
opinion on a
topic.
Raise Awareness
 Topic area may not be commonly
known across public – disturbing
circumstances – how can the audience
respond to this? – Provide support.
Objective
 Provides more
than one point of
view.
Investigate
 Provides a
balanced
argument on the
topic.

2. What will be the purpose of our own
documentary?
The main purpose of the documentary we’re planning to create is
to entertain. To make our documentary interesting we believe
making it entertaining is key as by doing this our audience’s
interest should be maintained at all times. Other purposes of our
documentary include factual as we also want to educate/raise
awareness of our topic to our audience. As a result of our
documentary, perhaps we will persuade our audience as maybe
their opinion on our topic will change.