Documenatry Codes and Conventions

Conventions: Below is a list of conventions that are used in the making of a documentary.
 

Hand held Camera - encoding realism and ‘truth’

Narrative Voice Over - leading the audience into a preferred reading

Vox Pops and Interviews with experts / witnesses / participants

Often a shorter running time than non-fiction feature films

Inter cutting / Parallel Editing linking key scenes

Use of Archive footage to support filmed scenes

Information decoded by audience

Mediated culture – documentaries select and construct, thus encoding opinion and subjectivity

Selective editing crucial to constructing meaning

Often point of view with encoded ideology, preferred meaning

Use of Establishing Shot and Close Up

Observational, Interactive, Reflexive, Expository in format

3 act structure, closed investigative narrative

Often single stranded, linear – one subject is often the topic

Exploration of narrative themes, messages and values

Different purposes – to entertain, inform, educate, satirise, shock and to satisfy

Characters are often exaggerated stereotypes

 
Codes:
 

Voice over, Calm and clear delivery which holds the narrative together. Common to expository documentaries such as David Attenborough’s Planet Earth 

Archive Material i.e. Relevant material such as newspapers, photographs, website and video footage that backs up the points made by the documentary. Convention of documentary: all images presented must be seen as real by the audience. Editing and voice over alters the ‘reality’ we see.

Interviews, Authenticate points expressed in the documentary, makes it seem more reliable. Could use experts to gain more info or subjects to gain their point of view Participatory documentaries show the questions being asked, other categories tend to edit this out and keep the answers.

Use of Text/Graphics, text, titles and graphics are a quick and easy way to convey information such as dates, back stories etc. and tend to be believed unquestioningly.

Sound, mixture of diegetic/ non-diegetic sound such as voice overs and music added for effect.

Visual Coding ie. Mise-en-scene and props. e.g. Interviewing a lawyer wearing a suit sitting in an office will make it seem more reliable and realistic.

 
 
 

 

Participatory and Observational Documentary's

Participatory Documentary:

A participatory documentary is a form of participatory media in which a group or a single directro creates their own film. The idea behind this is that making a video is easy and accessible, and is a great way of bringing people together to explore issues, voice concerns or simply to be creative and tell stories.

It is therefore primarily about process, though high quality and accessible films (products) can be created using these methods if that is a desired outcome. This process can be very empowering, enabling a group or community to take their own action to solve their own problems, and also to communicate their needs and ideas to decision-makers and/or other groups and communities. As such, PV can be a highly effective tool to engage and mobilise marginalised people, and to help them to implement their own forms of sustainable development based on local needs.

Example:

Louis and the Nazis
Louis and the Nazis' is about an English man with Jewish heritage traveling around America interviewing racists, finding out there beliefs and views. He interviews people such as the former leader of the KKK and nazi skinheads.

Observational:

A observational documentary follows a person around to observe and film events that has happened in their life.

Example:

Hoop Dreams (1994)
This 3 hour epic shot over 5 years in Chicago follows the trials and tribulations of two talented and athletic black teens from poor families, trying to bust out of ghetto life and make it in the National Basketball League. Aside from the rich personal journey ensured by filming these young men throughout their formative years as they mature exponentially, the struggle of their families and the backdrops of their decaying neighbourhoods provides an incisive insight into underprivileged black urban existence.

 

Documentary Genres and Ideas

What is a documentary?:
 
A documentary is a broad term to describe a non-fiction movie that in some way "documents" or captures reality. Documentaries are often used to reveal an unusual, interesting or unknown angle. Topics are limited only by ones imagination. Documentary filmmakers are often motivated to make their films because they feel a particular story or viewpoint is not being (adequately) covered by mainstream media.

Documentary Genres:

Expository:
 

The aim of the expository documentary is to be descriptive and informative, or to provide a particular argument.  For example, it may celebrate a set of common values, or a particular lifestyle. Expository documentary is the 'classic' mode of documentary, which is now more commonly used in TV documentaries, where abstract information is conveyed via the voice over commentary.

 

Observational:

 

A observational documentary follows a person around to observe and film events that has happened in their life.

Ideas for my Documentary:

For my documentary I am thinking of doing a short film about either my grandfather or my uncle. Both of them lived and my uncle fought during WWII so I thought I could interview them about their experiences and about their life during this.

I could also follow them during their daily life and see what it is like being in their shoes, but also still ask them questions about what their life was like when they where younger and maybe compare it to what it is like now.