Documentary Class.pptx

Documentary Film Attributes Non Fiction Documents Reality Non actors Historical Real Location Non Scripted Investigative Historical Archival Participatory

Origins

John Grierson, a key figure in the British documentary school, was the first to use the term documentary to review a film ‘Moana’ by Robert Flaherty in 1926, which he described as having “documentary value.” Many examples of the earliest film footage recorded by the Lumiere Brothers like ‘Workers leaving the Factory’, ‘Train entering the station’ is also now seen as a the earliest documentary footage recorded.

The Definition •

In 1948, the World Union of Documentary established the following definition of a documentary:

• “Documentaries are all methods of recording on celluloid any aspect of reality interpreted either by sincere and justifiable reconstruction, so as to appeal either to reason or emotion, for the purpose of stimulating the desire for, and the widening of human knowledge and understanding, and of truthfully posing problems and their solutions in the spheres of economics, culture, and human relations.”

Functions of Documentary • • • • •

FOUR FUNCTIONS(MICHAEL RENOV) TO RECORD OR REVEAL TO PERSUADE OR PROMOTE TO ANALYZE OR INTERROGATE TO EXPRESS

Types of Documentaries • • • • • •

Poetic Expository Participative Observational Reflexive Performative

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 a different set of 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. E.g- The Bridge (1928), Man of Aran (1934), Song of Ceylon (1934), Olympia (1938), Listen to Britain (1942), and Koyaanisqatsi (1983).

Expository Documentary The expository mode is what most people think of as a documentary. This mode of documentary directly addresses issues, and throws light on what exactly is happening in the world. Most news programs and nature –related documentaries have adopted an expository approach, and make use of this style of documentary. Expository documentaries make use of the 'voice of God', which is nothing but a commentator, narrator, or a voice over, making a strong statement which has the power to influence the minds of the audience. These documentaries speak directly to the audience, showing them reality. They revolve around historic happenings and important events. The Plow That Broke the Plains (1936), Trance and Dance in Bali (1952), Spanish Earth (1937), Les Maîtres Fous (1955), The Civil War (1990), Frank Capra's wartime series Why We Fight, and America's Most Wanted, We steal Secrets(2013), Raam Ke Naam.

Participative Documentary The participatory mode is characterized by a direct involvement between the filmmaker and the subjects in the film, mostly in the form of interviews, conversations, and sharing of experiences. The filmmaker becomes a character in the documentary and also often becomes a part of the events that he records in his films. Talk shows, interviews, witness statements to a particular event, etc., are some of the examples of such documentaries. Participatory documentaries are also called interactive documentaries. Vertov's The Man with a Movie Camera (1929), Rouch and Morin's Chronicle of a Summer (1960), Had Anhad, Solovky Power (1988), Shoah (1985),

Observational Documentary In this style, the filmmaker does not have a fixed script, screenplay, actors, or even location. A hand-held camera is used, and if a voice over is given, it is mostly the spontaneous observations of the filmmaker. The main aim of this mode of documentary is to portray ordinary real-life situations, and people's actions and take on such events.This mode allowed the director to record reality without becoming involved in what people were doing when they were not explicitly looking into the camera. High School (1968), Gilles Groulx and Michel Brault's Les Raquetteurs (1958), Albert & David Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin's Gimme Shelter (1970), D.A. Pennebaker's Don't Look Back (1967), Hospital (1970), Soho Stories (1996, The Female Nude

Reflexive Documentary Reflexive Documentaries are similar to Participatory in that they often include the filmmaker within the film — however, unlike Participatory, they make no attempts to explore an outside subject. Rather, they focus solely on themselves and the act of them making the film. This mode of documentary is more like an expose on documentaries, making the audience aware of several factors, like editing, sound recording, cameras, lights, etc. They show the audience the film crew, and some points in the film when they are getting shot.

Types and styles of documentaries

Vertov's The Man with a Movie Camera (1929), Bunuel's Land Without Bread (1932), Trinh T. Minhha's Surname Viet Given Name Nam (1989), Jim McBride & L.M. Kit Carson's David Holzman's Diary (1968), David & Judith MacDougall's The Wedding Camels (1980), The Ax Fight (1975), The War Game (1966), and Reassemblage (1982), The Moving Image(2018).

Performative Documentary Performative documentaries are autobiographic in nature, and they are perceived in different ways by different people. They are subjective in nature and strongly personal. They may make use of enactments to put forth a point of view. These documentaries usually portray personal connections to historical or political events.

Types and styles of documentaries

Alain Resnais' Night and Fog (1955), Peter Forgacs' Free Fall (1988), The Danube Exodus (1999), Robert Gardner's Forest of Bliss (1985), Morgan Spurlock's Super Size Me (2004), Unfinished Diary (1983), History and Memory (1991), The Act of Seeing with One's Own Eyes (1971), and Tongues Untied (1989), Tongues Untied(1983)

Documentary in India •The british started using documentary film making organisation for war propaganda during world war 2 . •First Indian Documentary featured in form of newsreel of Partition and Gandhi’s movements •In 1948, Films Division was founded which started funding short and feature length Documentaries on various issues •Filmmakers used halls and mobile vans to spread short and feature documentary films. •1957-1964 Loss of credility of Documentaries since all of them started looking alike and no new experiments were done •After digitization PSBT and other institutes produced better quality films •Due to heavy censorship laws, lot of political documentaries were banned.

Types and styles of documentaries

How to Make Documentary Films • Why is this film being made? • What does the producer/client/financier want to achieve through the film? • Who is the targeted audience and what should their reaction to the film be? • How much does the audience already know about the subject? • What will be the film’s technical conditions of use (Black & White/Multi-colour?Animation? Etc) • What is the budget of the film?

Every film, fiction or documentary, tells a story.Like in all other film form. Documentary has three broad structural elements:

• A beginning Creates an audiovisual ‘hook, Establishes the ‘core assertion’ of the film, Creates curiosity,Shows change or the promise of change, Creates the element of consequence, The Inciting Incident

• A middle Structure, Sequencing,transitions,mood, characters,location,rhythm, tempo

• An end Closed end, Open end, Climatic

Important Techniques for Documentary • • • •

Character- decided by point of view Archival footage, photos, clips, news story Interview formats Symbolism(transition, mood, montage,music,word, images) • Introductory Shots • Colour, lines, light, sound,object, words

Important tips while shooting • Always keep extra batteries. • Check the ambience sound before interviews. • Keep additional light epuipments while shooting in low light and night. • Do not overlap conversation while the subject is talking • Take drone shots seperately to make sure the crew does not appear in shots.

Legality, Censorship and Exhibition • Keep in mind the local laws and customs while shooting. • If you want documentary to be certified by Censor Board, read the laws carefully before editing. • Plan on how to exhibit your film to your target audience • Align with universities, NGO’s, Film Festivals