Many documentaries use authentic footage of the topic or event they are based on, unless there was no way of the events being visually recorded in which case they will use reconstructions to help create meaning to th
e audience, this usually happens in documentaries about historic events or criminal behaviour.
There are many different definitions of what a documentary is as there is so many different typ
es of documentary available to the public, the most accurate des
cription of a documentary is
"What distinguishes documentary is the portrayal of the recorded sounds and images of a
ctuality"-John Corner 1995.
Many documentaries also advertise a "Factual account" of an event although this doesn't necessarily mean that they need to include actual footage of the event. As the earlier documentaries were made to be shown in cinemas to boost morale and create propaganda for the British public, so many of them would take very long time to make so that they were suitable for the public to view, nowadays documentaries don't take as long to make but there is a lot of construction put into them so that they will give the audience the information they want and also will be interesting enough to stop them from dismissing it and turning it off.
The scheduling of a documentary is also very importa
nt as if a documentary is put on too early then it may offend people but also if it is put on t
oo late then it may not attract as many viewers as anticipated. Panorama is the only documentary to regularly have a prime time slot on a mainstream channel, this is because it regularly produces documentaries based on subjects that are heavily in the public eye and are a main topic of conversation, they can also be very focused on emotional or overly sensationalised stories as the public likes to know about emotional issues like poverty and disaster. Also British documentaries are renowned for being very investigative and gritty as they oppose the views of the government and intend to investigate the governments claims and expose them if they ar
e false.
One example of a documentary that opposes the governments actions was Ken Loach's "Cathy Come Home" as it shows the effects of homelessness in 1960's B
One example of a documentary that opposes the governments actions was Ken Loach's "Cathy Come Home" as it shows the effects of homelessness in 1960's B
ritain.Many documentaries offer a balanced viewpoint on many issues in today's society by interviewing people with conflicting ideas and playing them in tandem.
Some documentaries are emotional and sensational in order to gain a biased opinion. These documentaries are getting rarer however, as we live in a media conscious world, and viewers today are aware of when they are being
persuaded to a certain opinion. Opposing this, they do not have to have analysis – they can be descriptive and leave the viewer to decide their own opinion. British documentaries are famed for their investiga
tive journalism – they oppose the government and sometimes society in order to try to stir up debate between people. As long as documentaries are exposing hidden truths and constructing others, there will never be total consensus in society.
Dennis O'Rourke- "It is critical that film maker
s be rid of the fantasy that the documentary can be unproblematic representation of reality and truth can be conveniently dispensed and received like valium"
A majority of the documentar
ies shown on TV nowadays focuses on either
Crime- because the public enjoy the shock factor of seeing what crimes other people in their society commit.
Sex-because the public find the details of other peoples lives interesting and also documentaries such as Teenage and Pregnant makes the audience shocked at the way that teenagers are acting in today's society
Violence-this makes the audience feel thankful that they are not part of such a antisocial community
Law and Order-this piques the audiences interest on how criminals are treated and also how the government is dealing with problems in society.
Current affairs programmes such as Panorama and Dispatchers are often perceived as documentaries when there actually many differences between them
Current affairs programmes only take a fe
w weeks to make whereas documentaries can take months, up to a year to make as they can be very difficult to get interviews and footage depending on the subject as if it is a controversial subject then many people might not want to voice their opinions as they may be scared that there will be repercussions on their part, also if it is controversial the chances of getting any footage is very low. Current affairs programmes however are made for specific TV channels such as BBC, his means that their quality of interviews and the chances of the
m getting authorised footage is much higher.
Different types of Documentary
Fully Narrated
These are usually about nature or animals, they are completely voiced over in a "Voice of God" style, they are also usually narrated by David Attenborough or other experts in the documentaries specific field.
Fly On The Wall
These type of documentaries usually have a lot of undercover footage and subtitled interviews, they also use guerrilla footage.
Mixed
These are usually in a news reporting style where the presenter speaks to the camera in a "Voice to camera" style, this is done to create some meaning in the audiences minds.
Self Reflective
These are mostly where the presenter will speak to the camera about their life experiences, this can be very confusing to an audience as the documentary ends up focusing on the pr
esenter rather than the specific topic.
Docu-drama
In docu-dramas there are usually reconstructions to try and explain to the audience what the documentary is about, however these can be misleading and factually dangerous to make as facts, figures and events could be wrong.
Docu-soap
Docu-soaps are documentaries that have staged segments, these are usually cheaply made and of low quality.
No comments:
Post a Comment