A documentary film is a nonfictional motion picture intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education, or maintaining a historical record. “Documentary” has been described as a “film making practice, a cinematic tradition, and mode of audience reception” that is continually evolving and is without clear boundaries.  Documentary films were originally called ‘actuality’ films and were only a minute or less in length. Over time documentaries have evolved to be longer in length and to include more categories, such as educational, observational, and even ‘docufiction’. Documentaries are also educational and often used in schools to teach various principles. Social media platforms such as YouTube, have allowed documentary films to improve the ways the films are distributed and able to educate and broaden the reach of people who receive the information.

What is the purpose of a documentary film?

Their goal is to bring to light a certain cause or injustice with the hope that their film will help galvanize the masses to demand change. An example might be a documentary on a humanitarian crisis in Sudan. For other documentaries, the goal is simply to entertain or delight the audience in some way.

What are the types of documentary?

Documentary Films strictly speaking, are non-fictional, “slice of life” factual works of art – and sometimes known as cinema verity. For many years, as films became more narrative-based, documentaries branched out and took many forms since their early beginnings – some of which have been termed propagandist or non-objective.

Documentary films have comprised a very broad and diverse category of films. Examples of documentary forms include the following:

‘Biographical’ films about a living or dead person

Examples or Types:

Stephen Hawking – A Brief History of Time (1992)

Robert Crumb – Crumb (1994)

Muhammad Ali – When We Were Kings (1996)

A well-known historical event

Examples or Types:

Night and Fog (1955, Fr.) – The Holocaust

Shoah (1985) – The Holocaust

A concert or rock festival (aka Rockumentary)

Examples or Types:

Don’t Look Back (1967) – Bob Dylan

Monterey Pop (1968) – Monterey

A comedy shows

Examples or Types:

Richard Pryor or Eddie Murphy shows

A live performance

Examples or Types:

Buena Vista Social Club (1998) – Cuban musicians

Cirque du Soleil-Journey of Man (2000)

A sociological or ethnographic examination following the lives of individuals over a period of time

Examples or Types:

Michael Apted’s series of films: 28 Up (1984), 35 Up (1992) and 42 Up (1999)

Steve James’ Hoop Dreams (1994)

An expose including interviews

Examples or Types:

Minamata: The Victims and Their World (1971, Jp.)

An Inconvenient Truth (2006)

A sports documentary

Examples or Types:

The Endless Summer (1966) – Surfing

Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream (1995)

A compilation film of collected footage from government sources

Examples or Types:

Why We Fight (1943), Frank Capra’s WWII series

An examination of a specific subject area

Examples or Types:        

Historical Surveys (e.g., Ken Burns): The Civil War, Jazz, Baseball, or World War II

Nature- or Science-related themes (Ethnographic, Natural History or Wildlife Films)

Examples or Types:

Nanook of the North (1922)

Walt Disney’s The Living Desert (1953), The Vanishing Prairie (1954)

A ‘Shock’ Travelogue

Examples or Types:

Mondo Cane (1962)

Mockumentary (or Docu-Comedy)

Examples or Types:

Zelig (1983)

This is Spinal Tap (1984)

Pseudo-Documentary

Examples or Types:

Citizen Kane (1941) – The “newsreel” on Kane

JFK (1991) – Mixing fact and fiction

Why choose us for making Documentary?

We are experience team and we have 8 years experience in this sector. We have created various documentary for our clients successfully.

1. Industry Professionals
2. EMPLOYMENT
3. HIGHLY SPECIALISED CURRICULUM
4. FACILITIES
5. Location
6. Graduation Gala Screening & ALUMNI

In recognition of the outstanding quality of work produced by Best Director, Best Producer, Screenwriter, Best Feature Screenplay

After graduation we assist our graduates with production advice, access to facilities and equipment in order to continue to support the creative and professional’s goals of our growing network of alumni.