NON- FICTION FILMS AN INTRODUCTION

FICTION VS NON-FICTION Fiction films / Feature films Fictional in nature. Tell stories. Stuff you’d see at the AMC Non-fiction films / Documentary films “Document” real life Tell stories…about “real” people Unlikely to see at the AMC For every one Dark Knight, there are probably HUNDREDS of documentaries made! We use these terms interchangeably!

WHAT MAKES A FILM NON-FICTION? Facts drive the story Vs. The story includes or is based on facts that are molded to fit the narrative

FACT-BASED VS. FACTUAL FICTION

NON-FICTION FILM = DOCUMENTARY “A documentary film is a factual film, which is dramatic.” -Pare Lorentz, American documentary filmmaker known for his films about the New Deal.

DOCUMENTARIES CAN BE ABOUT ANYTHING!

BUT… EVERY text has a bias (some perspective / slant) Even documentaries have biases. Think…”for” or “against” a topic. Making a topic look good, bad, silly, serious There is a spectrum of bias Stuff you watch in biology class is “less biased” Life Cycle of the Bee – less bias here! Others may be more biased Super Size Me, Freakonomics – more bias here!

MODES OF NON- FICTION (THERE’S A PODCAST ON THIS LATER!) At one end of the spectrum: -Attempts to be unbiased -Life “as is.” Filmed as if from the perspective of a fly on the wall. -Biographies, profiles, historical, educational

WHAT’S TYPICAL? Viewed on TV channels such as Discovery, History, Animal Planet, and PBS … rarely shown in mainstream cineplexes EXCEPT as IMAX releases. Topics: -World War I -Space exploration -U-Boats -Oceans -Civil War -U.S. presidents -Sports

MODES OF NON- FICTION At the other end of the spectrum: Argues a perspective, sometimes without balance Uses cinematic conventions of editing, sound, lighting to make that argument. Involves a call to action, often political in nature.

WHAT’S TYPICAL Made for theatrical release on par with fictional films. Topics: -Political corruption (Fahrenheit 9/11) -Corporate greed (Inside Job, Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) -Animal abuse/cruelty (The Cove) -Human exploitation (Born into Brothels)

CONVENTIONS OF NON- FICTION (PODCAST ON THIS TOO, LATER!) -Archival film footage -Interviews -Re-enactments -Following subject(s) over a period of time. -Features “real” people not actors -Low(er) budget

NON- FICTION FILMS AN INTRODUCTION