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1. {
Genre Analysis
Joe Cornes

2. Here are some hyperlinks to
different channel ‘catch up’
pages.

3. Introduction to documentaries
The purpose of a documentary:
The purpose of a documentary is to document a specific topic,
inform, educate and entertain.
John Grierson
pioneering Scottish
documentary maker
considered the father of
British and Canadian
documentary film

4. Types of documentaries
Fly on the wall documentaries:
• No narration
• Observation
• No interviews
Given the name of ‘Fly on the
wall’ due to no
acknowledgement towards the
camera/cameraman
T.A Pennebaker
one of the pioneers of
Direct Cinema

5. Fully narrated
• A fully narrated documentary has a
voice over the documentary to help the
audience gain a better understanding of
what is going on.
•
• Fully narrated documentaries often us
direct address and the voice over goes
along with the visuals that the audience
is seeing; meaning that everything is
based around the visuals.
• Fully narrated documentaries use the
voice of 'God' and so people take what
they hear as the truth.
• Incudes voice over
• Voice anchors the meaning of visuals

6. Mixed documentary
A mixed documentary uses a combination
of interviews, observation and narration
This is to help the argument the
director is trying to put forward.
.In contrast to the voice of God style,
the narration is often from within the
frame (and therefore the action).
Narration from within the scene is also the
style adopted in modern news
reporting. The journalist speaks to the
camera, and then pictures of the
action continue over his or her voice.
While this style uses aspects from most of
the other styles, critics argue
it still tends to suggest that it is
representing objective reality and not
just a selective construction.

7. Self-reflexive
The subjects of a self-reflexive
documentary acknowledge the presence
of the camera and often speak directly to
the filmmaker.
Self-reflexive documentaries make a point
of drawing attention to the filmmaker's
role in making a of reality.
Critics say self-reflexive documentaries can
be confusing and perhaps the
filmmakers are just showing off. By
drawing attention to themselves as
filmmakers, they are seeking selfpublicity;
the film is more about the
filmmaker than the subject.

8. Docusoap
• Docusoap is a combination of two
genres: documentary and soap opera
• Docusoap involve many characters just
like soap operas and strive to be
realistic, just like a documentary is real.
• Docusoap are made to entertain an
audience, this is different from an
actual documentary as they are made
to inform, entertain and educate.

9. Docudrama
• A docudrama can be defined as a
documentary-style genre featuring
dramatized re-enactments of actual
historical events.
• It is a fact-based representation of real
events that may represent contemporary
social issues.
• Directors of docudrama, drift away
from using well known actors as this
would contradict the actual docudrama.