Roots
Docere: To teach or instruct
Document: A modern phrase indicating important piece of paper presented in court
To document: Say we document its identity or statements
When was ‘documentary’ first used?
First used by John Grierson who was writing about the film Moana(1926)
=> Said it has documentary value
John Grierson, the founder of the British documentary movement in the 1930s
Documentary: Creative treatment of actuality
Surprise to students that even this time, creativity was underlined
Film cannot be qualified or disqualified by a single criterion
Example:
Often considered actors belong to fictional films and not to true documentraries
There is an exception
A Tv-documentary using professional actors to re-enact a crime scene in order to make us understand how things may have happened
Immoral to have the real criminal to perform another knife stabbing to the victim,, event though it may be more true or closer to the original one
Expository
Lecturing, for example with a personal presenter or voice-over
Ex.Trader
Why should.. get a job
What do you want to be in the future.. kid replying
Observational
The camera, microphone, and film crew seem not to be disturbing the scene or even noticed by the participants
Like “fly on the wall”
Ex.Trader
Trader falls into this category, as there is no interference of what is going on, and mostly the film crew stay out of the film
Participatory or Interactive
The film crew takes part in the action or chain of events
=> Used a lot in today’s documentaries
Reflexive
Film exposes and discusses its own role as a film (e.g. ethics or conditions of film making ) alongside the treatment of case or subject
Performative
The film crew creates many of the events and situations to be filmed by their own intervention or through the events carried out for the sake of them
Example:
Objective to criticize Mc Donalds
Conduct an experiment:
For one month, I am going to eat nothing but McDonalds (Othr person: Didn’t eat the same thing)
Starts getting sick, gains a lot of weight, before and after
Poetic
The aesthetic values, the qualities of the form and sensual appeals are dominant
Ex.Trader
Techniques, landscape, country that nobody thinks about
Contain music, help find the mood going on
Intentions of the filmmaker
Enthusiasm and commitment, the filmmaker wants to explore, to probe, and to show us something important or otherwise overlooked; devoted to a cause or to people, trying to make a difference
Subject matter, themes or content
Something of importance and relevance; historical, social or natural phenomena; persons or places of significance
Expectations of the (general) audience
Authenticity, insight, disclosure, something about real people and problems, learning something
Target groups (implied)
The general public(public service) or segments with a more specialized interest and knowledge on the subject in question
Ethics
We expect truthfulness, not propoganda
The documentary may be engaged and enthusiastic, but should be open about its preferences, sympathies, and presuppositions
“Neutrality” or “Objectivity” should be understood as problematic, but a well-balanced view is welcomed
Communicative Function
To inform, discuss, engage, enlighten, intervene, explore, express, disturb and commit - more so than to merely entertain, amuse, distract, conform or confim
Context of actual use
Education, public service, debate forum, campaigns, discussions and pastime entertainment
Style and form
Often realism, perhaps with a reportage-like style, interviews, a rough style, lighting and settings and sound appear natural and not carefully controlled
Often an argumentative, exploring, or investigative attitude
Relating to major genres of art
It is not fiction. It may be highly artistic and poetic, but seems more like art with purpose than art for art’s own sake
Epics, lyrics, and drama seems to serve didactic[educational and instructive]aspect
Recordings
On location, authentic settings and props, real time, real sound, no actors or acting, but actual people(or animals, in nature documentaries) being themselves
Drama and narrative appear not imposed on the scenes, but emerging from actual events
Importance and evaluation
In terms of context and communicative qualities, the film makes a considerable contribution towards a better world