THEORY NOTES / DOCUMENTARY - 30th November 2018

Documentary Modes- Notes

• Codes and conventions

6 different modes

Expository

A narrator you can trust

David Attenborough - A NATURALIST - Someone who knows what they are talking about

''Voice of god'' - trustworthy

Someone people believe in

Person fit for purpose

involve questions, answers come from the actual video content

Exposing things we would never usually be able to see

Delve deeper into concepts

Use persuasive techniques

Detail

Equipment

Environment

Music has to idea to content

Opening establishing shots

Poetic modes link in

Maintain continuity of the spoken argument or perspective

Examples ... Blue planet & Planet earth

Participatory

Film maker becomes part of the film

Own research

Facts

Gender, mental health etc

Challenge the concept

Be objective or else it will come across bias

Hand held camera often used

Minimal editing

Long takes

Putting yourself in the experiment

Challenging ideas

The answer comes from within the documentary it's self

Shock purposes

Observational

Direct cinema

Usually a hand held camera

Someone being followed

Somewhat messy

Raw aspects

Reality

Human interest elements

Inspirational to enforce change

Social change to create a knock out effect

Looking into someone's world

They might not necessarily know they are being filmed

Performative mode

Interactive

Performance

Often staged

Personal

Cryptic

Unconventional

A focus of the documentary

Poetic mode

Artistic

Subjective expressions

Emphasis on visuals

Tone, Mood, Rhythm

Creating feeling

Often includes propaganda

Reflexive Mode

Awareness

Acknowledges the constructed nature of the documentary

Audience will be intrigued by the actual process of the documentary

Emphasis typically on the relationship between viewer and film maker more so than the subject and the film maker