TCF112/Documentary Form

Documentary Definition

• Stuart Kaminsky
  • "Film which through certain conventions creates the illusion that the events depicted were not controlled by the filmmakers."

Types of Documentary

• Primitive Doc.
  • Lumière Brothers films.
  • See lecture on Early Cinema.
• Travel/Adventure Doc.
  • "Exotic" location/people/cultures
  • Filmmaker imposes his/her culture on exotic cultures
    • E.g., Nanook of the North (Robert Flaherty, 1922)
      • Inuit culture, 1922
      • B&W, shot silent, no handheld camera, daytime shooting only, intertitles used to explain/comment on
    • E.g., Congorilla (Martin & Osa Johnson, 1932)
• Didactic/Teaching Doc. (some call "propaganda")
  • 1930s, England
    • John Grierson, coined term, "documentary"
    • Teach about social issues
  • New Deal doc.
    • F.D. Roosevelt's recovery program
    • E.g., The Plow That Broke the Plains
  • Nazi doc.
    • E.g., Triumph of the Will
    • Nazi rally, in Nuremburg, 1934; Leni Riefenstahl
  • "Why We Fight" Series
    • Narration
    • Graphics--animation (Disney)
    • Previously shot footage
    • Shot very little new footage
      • Triumph
    • Staged scenes
    • B&W
    • Shot silent
• Camera as Observer
  • Free Cinema (1960s, England)
    • No narration
    • Handheld camera
    • No apparent staging
    • Still mostly B&W
  • Direct Cinema (1960s-70s, US)
    • E.g., D. A. Pennebaker
    • E.g., Don't Look Back, 1967
  • Cinéma Vérité (1960s, France)
• Television doc.
  • Color video
  • Handheld camera
  • Digital graphics
  • Not limited to daytime shooting
    • E.g., Taxi Cab Confession