NON-FICTION FILMSAN 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 storyVs.

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-FICTIONAt 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 TYPICALMade 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 FILMSAN INTRODUCTION