Introduction to Documentary

Unit 1 – Understanding the Documentary

Define the modes of documentary representation.

Documentary filmmaking is a cinematic style dating back to the earliest days of film. While Wikipedia can define its most basic definition
as “a nonfictional motion picture intended to document some aspects of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a
historical record,” the style has become a catch-all for both certain filmmaking styles as well as a noble cinematic pursuit of truth. There
are six modes of documentary. These are –

 Participatory documentary –
Participatory documentaries include the filmmaker within the narrative. This inclusion can be as minor as a filmmaker using
their voice to prod their subjects with questions or cues from behind the camera—or as major as a filmmaker directly
influencing the actions of the narrative. In the example above, Michael Moore is directly influencing how his subjects react to
his questions and, therefore, influencing the overall narrative of the film in a way it would label as participatory. But Michael
Moore is a particularly complicated filmmaker, but we’ll talk more about him later. There are some debate in the documentary
community as to just how much filmmaker participation it takes to earn a documentary the label of “participatory.” Some argue
that, due to their very nature, all documentaries are participatory. Regardless, this style might be one of the most natural for
those starting off.
Some examples of participatory documentaries include:
 Chronicle of a Summer (1961) — Dir. Edgar Morin and Jean Rouch
 Sherman’s March (1985) — Dir. Ross McElwee
 Paris Is Burning (1990) — Dir. Jennie Livingston
 The Danube Exodus (1998) — Dir. Péter Forgács
 Expository documentary –
Expository documentaries are probably closest to what most people consider “documentaries.” In sharp contrast to poetic,
expository documentaries aim to inform and/or persuade — often through omnipresent “Voice of God” narration devoid of
ambiguous or poetic rhetoric. This model includes the familiar Ken Burns and television styles. Those looking for the most
direct form of documentary storytelling should explore the straightforward expository style. It is one of the best ways to share a
message or information. If it is compared, this style with one type of modern genre or style, it would be the video essay. So
think about something like Nerdwriter that covers a specific topic with exciting visuals and straightforward narration that makes
points towards their argument.
Some examples of expository documentaries include:
 The Plow That Broke the Plains (1936) — Dir. Pare Lorentz
 City of Gold (1957) — Dir. Colin Low and Wolf Koenig
 Waiting for Fidel (1974) — Dir. Michael Rubbo
 March of the Penguins (2005) — Dir. Luc Jacquet
 Observational documentary –
Observational documentaries aim to observe the world around them. Originating in the 1960s alongside advances in portable
film equipment, the Cinéma Vérité-style is much less pointed than the expository approach. Observational documentaries
attempt to give voice to all sides of an issue by offering audiences firsthand access to some of the subject’s most important
(and often private) moments. The observational style has been very influential over the years, and filmmakers often use it in
other film genres to create a sense of realness and truth. One of the most famous examples of this is Harlan County,
USA, directed by Barbara Kopple.
Some examples of observational documentaries include:
 Crisis: Behind a Presidential Commitment (1963) — Dir. Robert Drew
 Salesman (1969) — Dir. Albert Maysles, David Maysles, and Charlotte Zwerin
 Hoop Dreams (1994) — Dir. Steve James
 The Monastery: Mr. Vig and the Nun (2006) — Dir. Pernille Rose Grønkjær
 Performative documentary –
Performative documentaries are an experimental combination of styles used to stress subject experience and share an
emotional response with the world. They often connect and juxtapose personal accounts with larger political or historical
issues. This has sometimes been called the “Michael Moore-style,” as he often uses his own personal stories as a way to
construct social truths (without having to argue the validity of their experiences).
Some examples of Performative Documentaries include:
 Drifters (1929) — Dir. John Grierson
 Night and Fog (1956) — Dir. Alain Resnais
 The Thin Blue Line (1988) — Dir. Errol Morris
 Bowling for Columbine (2002) — Dir. Michael Moore
 Reflexive documentary –
Reflexive documentaries are similar to participatory docs in that they often include the filmmaker within the film. However,
unlike participatory, most creators of reflexive documentaries make no attempt to explore an outside subject. Rather, they
focus solely on themselves and the act of making the film. The best example of this style is the 1929 silent documentary Man
with a Movie Camera by Soviet filmmaker Dziga Vertov. It’s a classic showcase of the creative — and quite challenging —
images a true reflexive documentary can create.
Other examples of reflexive documentaries include:
 No Lies (1973) Dir. Mitchell Block
 Surname Viet Given Name Nam (1989) Dir. T. Minh-ha Trinh
 Biggie & Tupac (2002) Dir. Nick Broomfield
 Poetic documentary –
First seen in the 1920s, poetic documentaries are very much what they sound like. They focus on experiences, images, and
showing the audience the world through different eyes. Abstract and loose with narrative, the poetic sub-genre can be very
unconventional and experimental in form and content. The ultimate goal is to create a feeling rather than a truth. For
filmmakers, this approach offers a valuable lesson in experimenting with all the elements of documentary filmmaking by
finding creative compositions, challenging juxtapositions, and different forms of cinematic storytelling. A modern example of
this would be Terrence Malick’s Voyage of Time, consisting of tons of ambiguous, poetic, abstract imagery. While there is
some narration throughout the film, I would still consider the bulk of it – poetic.
Some examples of poetic documentaries include:
 Coal Face (1935) — Dir. Alberto Cavalcanti
 Fata Morgana (1971) — Dir. Werner Herzog
 Tongues Untied (1989) — Dir. Marlon Riggs
 Welt Spiegel Kino (2005) — Dir. Gustav Deutsch
Unit 3 – Documentary Production : Production

Cinematography Techniques in Documentary Film making –

Dating back to the early days of film making, the documentary genre offered creators a wide range of techniques for expressing
their ideas. Today film and video content creators can draw from this rich history of documentary film making – not only benefiting
from tried – and – true techniques but also drawing inspiration from the documentaries intrinsic creative story telling latitude.
Learning more about documentary film making techniques helps to craft more impactful film projects. There are limitless
technique which can be used to tell the story exactly how one sees it be it using film angles, cutting in rel time footage, adding
music for emoting and more. From conception through completion, there are certain documentary film making techniques that
can help documentary makers.

a) Create a documentary shortlist –

Shortlists help directors and directors of photography to layout the shots and camera angles such as – close ups and
three – quarter profile shots, that help to visually tell the story with the clear intension. How each shot will be focused
should be considered as many documentaries feature real life charactes recounting their own story – what
angle/perspective will bring out their characteristics.

b) Design your camera movements –

Generally, documentary filmamkers like to keep the camera steady, focusing on the main subject or story directly. But
there are times when using different camera movements can help tell story more affectively and bring out more emotion.
For eg – Using a tracking shot, subject’s physical reaction can be shown or a low angle shot to change their point of
view.

c) Consider camera lenses –

When we think about how a documentary will look on a TV, phone or big theatrical screen we will realize that the camera
equipment and lenses used in filming can make all the difference to both the shooting experience and to final projects
look and feel. Eg – the wide angle lens with a focal length typically between 4 – 20 mm, this lens shows of more of the
environment in each shot which can add to a feeling of excitement as if something big is happening in front of our eyes.
The 50 mm lens also known as ‘nifty fifty’ is a prime lens with one focal length and a fixed aperture. That can represent
how the human eye sees object and people in a natural setting. It is both light weight and affordable making it a great
choice for handheld filmmaking. the Telephoto lens is used to photograph and film far away subjects it brings far away
subjects chosen to the camera resulting in the framing of the subject as if you were up close. One can try with different
other cameras such as – DSLRs or hybrid cameras that excel in both video and image capture so that one has a veriety
and image capture so that one has a variety of options when it comes to edit the documentary.