Documentary mini-task

1. What is a documentary?

A documentary is when you use pictures or videos, such as interviews of people talking about
subject of their choice in detail. This can be fictional or non-fictional. An example of this would be a
documentary on anything one could be about animals or even people.

2. Expository documentary

Speak directly to the viewer, often in the form of an authoritative commentary employing voiceover
or titles, proposing a strong argument and point of view. These films are rhetorical, and try to
persuade the viewer. These documentaries are often biographies on people because you usually
speak to the viewer directly. This could be the biography of Michael Jackson.

3. Observational documentary

The performative mode of documentary is the direct opposite of the observational where
unobtrusive observation of the subject is the director's aim. Performative documentary emphasizes
the filmmaker's own involvement with the subject. An example of this documentary would be on
MTV when they follow around the rich kids and adults on MTV cribs.

4. Interactive documentary

A web documentary, interactive documentary, or multimedia documentary is a documentary

production that differs from the more traditional forms video, audio, photographic, by applying a full
complement of multimedia tools. The user can modify its journey through the documentary based
on their responses. This is the use of archive materials such as newspapers, news footage and
headline titles. Location shooting hand held cameras. This can include a voiceover by the
documentary maker. The documentary make is visible by the audience.

5. Reflective documentary

This documentary borrows techniques from fiction film for an emotional subjectional response.
Emphasises the aggressive nature of film and anti-realistic techniques. For example, this could be
aggressive music/dramatic or aggressive lighting. With the voiceover, this is likely to be questioning
and uncertain rather than authoritative.

6. Performative documentary

The documentary maker and the crew interacts with the subject, the documentary maker will also
comment on the process of making the documentary, the documentary is often shaped in to the
narrative of an investigation or search which there may be no satisfactory conclusion. This
documentary addresses the audience in emotional and direct way. It has a subject matter often to
do with the identity like gender or sexuality rather than factual subjects. These sorts of
documentaries are used because, the performative mode is particularly well-suited to telling the
stories of filmmakers from marginalized social groups, offering the chance to air unique perspectives
without having to argue the validity of their experiences.
In conclusion I think that it is better to use factual documentary styles rather than fictional, because
it is more informational and accurate.