CODES AND CONVENTIONS

OF FACTUAL PROGRAMMING

ObservationalAn observational documentary captures the

objective reality on film, but the film maker isn’t

seen or heard on camera, also known as ‘fly on

the wall’. The film maker only films what they are

seeing first hand, they stay neutral and don’t

interfere with any of the events being filmed.

Observational

Codes and Conventions of Observational Film Making;

The filmmaker remains hidden behind the camera and for the most part is

ignored by the surrounding environment.

The cameraman doesn’t interfere with what he is filming. They have no

influence in the scenes on camera.

Nothing is staged for the camera, it is all real-life events.

The camera often has to rush about to be able to keep up with the subject,

which results in the footage looking shaky and amateur.

Observational

Examples of Observational Documentaries

MTV Cribs – Cameras follow well known celebrities around their house as

they give a tour.

Richard Pennebacker’s ‘Don’t Look Back’ – Following Bob Dylan around on

his 1965 UK tour.

Frederick Wiseman’s ‘Hospital’ – fly on the wall style documentary of an

American hospital.

Participatory• A participatory film is still filmed as a

documentary, however the filmmaker is seen on

camera. They are sometimes seen interviewing

subjects. Participatory films welcome interaction

between the filmmaker and those being filmed.

The filmmaker also has some influence over what

is being filmed- so they could potentially

dramatize something to make the events look

more dramatic to those watching.

Participatory

Codes and Conventions of Participatory Film Making;

The filmmaker’s impact on the events recorded is acknowledged.

The filmmaker can be seen on camera, whereas observational filmmakers

are neither seen nor heard.

Participatory

Examples of Participatory Documentaries

Nick Broomfield’s ‘Kurt and Courtney’

The films of Michael Moore – becomes a crucial part of the documentary,

almost becomes a character in what is being filmed.

MTV’s ‘Catfish’ – The whole documentary is centered around one of the

filmmakers, Nev, who is either on camera or narrating. The documentary is

following him as he tried to meet the girl that he has been talking to on the

internet.

Reflexive• A reflexive documentary is different to both the

previous examples, as it acknowledges the

constructed nature of the documentary. The

filmmaker is present both in front the camera as

well as narrating the documentary also.

Reflexive

Codes and Conventions of Reflexive Film Making

The artificial side of the documentary is exposed- the audience are made

aware of the editing, sound, recording etc..

Reflexive

Examples of Reflexive Documentaries

Dziga Vertov’s ‘Man with a Movie Camera’ – a film about the mechanization

of soviet life in the late twenties. Both the camera and the cameraman

become part of the subject.

Nick Broomfield’s films

Louis Theroux’s films

Performative Performative documentary is still getting a certain point

across, however the filmmaker stresses certain points that

back up their own personal point of view. They are

selective with what they show and only show footage that

will validate the opinion they wish to express to the

viewer.

Performative

Codes and Conventions of Performative Film Making

Emphasizes the emotional and social impact on the audience.

Emphasizes film makers personal point of view.

Edited in a way the reflects the filmmakers own point of view.

Performative

Examples of Performative Documentaries

Morgan Spurlock’s ‘Supersize me’

Some Michael Moore films

ExpositoryExpository documentaries emphasize verbal commentary

and argumentative logic, often using a narrator. It is the

most commonly used form of documentary. Expository

documentaries could be seen as quite biased films, as

they often display a ‘logical’ and ‘right’ argument.

Expository

Codes and Conventions of Expository Film Making

Often uses a narrator

‘Filmmaker’ is never seen. If it doesn’t have a narration

there is usually a presenter.

Expository

Examples of Expository Documentaries

Mostly associated with TV news Programming

John Grierson’s works

Most nature documentaries

CONVENTIONS OF

NEWS PROGRAMMES

TV News Readers

Research any guests Well- read Wear smart clothes, eg suit

Well spoken

Interview guests

Clear voice

Read news

Educated on current

eventsFocusedUnderstanding of legal and

ethical issues

Remain professional –

no emotion

Last minute research

Fast thinking- need

to be able to ad lib

Read/edit script

Confident

TV News Readers

• TV News Presenters are one of the main focuses of a

television news show. They have to be able to read fast-

as they will be reading from a teleprompter, and they also

have a script that they can refer to which gives them more

information to read. They also sometimes need to

improvise live on the air if a breaking news story comes

in.

TV News Studios

Screens show stats

& graphics

Desk where presenter sits

Film crew out

of shot

Lighting

2 or 3 cameras

Large area

with space

for

interviewees/

guests

Green screens

Desk is normally centralised in the studio

TV News Studios

• Every television news show is filmed in a TV studio. Most

studios commonly have a desk in the centre or within the

shot, and screens or a green screen in the background

where graphics and statistics related to the stories will

flash up. In some studios, like the BBC and Sky News,

they have glass in the background where you can see

desks and offices where people are researching stories.

There are usually various cameras that usually film the

presenter from different angles.

TV News Programmes

• Although there are many TV News Programmes, they all

follow the same ‘recipe’. They usually start with quite a

fast-paced piece of music that notifies the viewer that it is

starting, before showing a shot of the presenter sat at a

desk in the studio. Next, they’ll usually read out the

headlines of the stories, before moving onto each

individual story and giving more information. Whilst the

headlines are being read out, the screen in the

background normally have either pictures that are related

to the story or relevant statistics. For example, if it were a

story about the NHS, they would normally have a picture

of a doctor or sometimes some medication.

TV News Programmes

• Throughout the programme, the cameras will cut away to

an expert on a particular subject being reported on, or a

correspondent who is live at the scene, for example they

may cut away to a political correspondent who is live at

the Houses of Parliament. They also use Vox pops in

stories that concern the public or would have the most

public interest, for example stories about student loans or

the NHS.