Documentary 'mini-task'

Documentaries show and inform the audience about a specific topic which can be done in many ways.
It can be argued, by the way the documentaries are constructed, that they do not tell the entire truth.

Expository documentaries include a voice over which narrates along side the images, giving facts and arguments. The voice over connotes the images. This type of documentary is supposedly unbiased and transparent. Although the voice over does not provide opinions, it may go over the original sound footage maybe missing out some important information.
An example of an expository documentary is 'We Are The Lambeth Boys.' I believe this documentary was fairly truthful however many things in this documentary detracted from the authenticity, for example the types of shots. There were many different shots capturing the same moment from different angles during the documentary. These means we would be able to see the camera, however, we didn't. Another example of an expository documentary would be wildlife documentaries, like 'Frozen Planet', voiced by David Attenborough.

An observational documentary includes no interference from the filmmaker - no direction on what to do. The documentary type makes it seem like we are a "fly on the wall" due to there being no narrator or interviews. It is also objective, showing both sides of an argument, allowing the viewer to decide what to think. 'High School' is an observational documentary. In my opinion, this documentary felt very real. The documentary shows a group of students on a day at high school. Another example is 'Children Underground'(2001) which follows the life of children on the streets, some who are only 8 years old. The reason that this is an observational documentary because there is no interaction from the filmmaker, allowing us to just watch the children living in their everyday environment, we are observing them.

During a interactive documentary, the filmmaker participates in the text. They talk to interviewees and connect with the audience. Opinions in this documentary are more evident which may hinder the audiences' own opinion.
An example of an interactive documentary that I have watched is 'Louis And The Nazis'. To me, this documentary seemed truthful however was not entirely unbiased. The filmmaker who was present in the documentary did give a few opinions. There was only one side presented. Access and privacy can be a problem for a production as the filmmaker/interviewer may ask a question which is either too personal or the interviewee refuses to answer due to morals. You also need releases and permissions to be able to film certain places which can hinder the making. There is regulation by Ofcom, linking to privacy, in section 8, they say "Some activities and conditions may be of such a private nature that filming or recording, even in a public place, could involve an infringement of privacy." This a regulation to protect the public who don't wish to be filmed. Another example is 'The Most Hated Family In America' (2007) , which was also written by Louis Theroux. Louis follows a family in America who are part Westboro baptist church, who have boycotted many soldier funerals. The synopsis mentions "Louis struggles to come to terms with the infamous family who picket the funerals of soldiers in protest against an America that tolerates homosexuality." which could also influence the audience.

A reflexive documentary is more constructed than the others. Normal shots are taken and are heavily edited which affects the authenticity of the text.  The aim of this type of documentary is to expose heavy matters, they do this through the editing. During class we watched an reflexive documentary called 'Territories' which I did not find very real. This may be due to many shots being edited together and strange poem that voiced over, all in all it was extremely confusing to me. "Man with a Movie Camera" (1929) is another example, although it was not as heavily edited as 'Territories', you can still see the construction behind it. There are everyday shots edited together.

Performative documentaries use many re-enactments and soundtracks which help immerse the audience.  The main focus in this documentary is on the presentation of the text. 'The Thin Blue Line' is an example of a Performative documentary. I found this documentary very real as it showed interviews of both sides of the story.
Re-enactments are used to help the viewer get a clearer image of what had happened and it is an easier way of showing the event. However, these made me over dramatized and can give false implications. A documentary similar to this "The Thin Blue Line" is "Aileen: Life and Death of a Serial Killer" (2003) which is about Aileen Wuornos, a prostitute serial killer. This follows the judgement to execute Aileen Wuornos. This includes interviews from Wuornos herself. The documentary includes re-enactments and an interview from Aileen herself, the reason why it is a performative documentary.

In conclusion, I think that all documentaries should be honest to the viewer. Although I know it is extremely hard to be always impartial, but we should be as impartial as we can. I think the most truthful documentary format would be observational due to there being no input of the film maker and therefore, the audience will be able to decipher what they think by themselves.