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Types of documentaries
The document describes 6 types of documentaries as defined by theorist Bill Nichols: 1) Poetic Documentary which presents a personal topic in an artistic style through editing and camerawork. 2) Observational Documentary where the filmmaker is a neutral observer of subjects and events as they unfold without influencing them. 3) Reflexive Documentary acknowledges the constructive nature of documentaries and how they present a reconstruction rather than objective truth. 4) Expository Documentary allows direct access to the audience through voiceover or titles to provide context. 5) Participatory Documentary alters the events presented through the filmmaker's presence. 6) Performative Documentary acknowledges
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Introduction to documentary types developed by Bill Nichols, outlining six distinct styles.
Personal, artistic expression focusing on individual experiences conveyed through music and visuals.
Neutral observation style capturing real life without interference, showcasing authentic reactions.
Engages audience in realism and representation, highlighting the documentary's constructed nature.
Non-fiction films that present information directly to the audience, often employing a 'voice of god' approach.
Influenced by the filmmaker's presence, altering events and situations during the documentary process.
Emphasizes emotional and subjective dimensions, often autobiographical, context-dependent meanings.
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Types of documentaries
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- 2. • Origin thestyles of documentary or documentary modes were developed by American theorist Bill Nichols. The concept was created as he wanted to distinguish the particular traits and different conventions used in documentaries. The 6 types are
- 3. Poetic Documentary(subjective, artisticexpression) • A documentary that has a topic which is personal to the people involved, usually the presenter and interviewees. It emphasizes someaspects of the person’s life and presents these via music, camera shots and angles and the editing. It can also be quite artistic in the way it is presented.
- 4. • A documentarywhere the filmmaker is a neutral observer. (from the outside looking in) Life is lived and observed. It can then be seen how people/animals react in different situations. The filmmaker is normally out of shot so they cannot influence what is happening. Nothing is rehearsed or staged, this means the camera crew have to rush around, resulting in poor shaky looking footage. Observational Documentary(Fly on the wall)
- 5. Reflexive Documentary (awareness ofthe process) • A documentary where the audience engages with the content of the documentary as it happens, they acknowledge the issues of realism and representation and modality judge them when they arrive. It shows the constructive nature of the documentary showing not necessarily the truth, but a reconstruction.
- 6. Expository Documentary (voice ofgod) • Documentaries in this style are usually non-fiction films. There is direct access to the audience.
- 7. Participatory Documentary • Aparticipatory documentary is where the events and situations presented are influenced and altered by the presence of the filmmaker.
- 8. Performative Documentary • Aperformative documentary acknowledges the emotional and subjective aspects of documentary and presents ideas as a part of a context having different meanings for different people and are often autobiographical in nature.