StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...

Are the documentary filmmakers trying to persuade you of a certain point of view - Assignment Example

Cite this document
Summary
Are the documentary filmmakers trying to persuade you of a certain point of view? If so, how does the documentary persuade the viewer of this point of view? What kind of techniques, narratives or other devices does the filmmaker use to persuade its viewers?…
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER95.2% of users find it useful
Are the documentary filmmakers trying to persuade you of a certain point of view
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Are the documentary filmmakers trying to persuade you of a certain point of view"

Download file to see previous pages

This power to persuade comes from the fact that documentaries deal with raw reality and in doing so, it becomes more convincing and powerful in many ways. It is not the camera as a passive recording device, but the man behind the camera, with his particular likes and dislikes that makes us attracted to a piece of documentary. From the very beginning, there were distinctly two types of filmmaking. The first one tries to portray the film as a tool of magic, in which we see what is possibly not seen in real life.

A larger than life, magical representation. This method was pioneered by George Melies (1861-1938). The second one portrayed film as a capturing device that captures time in the form of image and sound. It captures reality as reality itself. This method was pioneered by Lumiere Brothers (Auguste Lumiere-1862-1954 and Jean Lumiere- 1864-1948). Thus Lumiere Brothers can be considered to be the father of documentary filmmaking. In the documentary mode of filmmaking, the man behind the camera captures the elements inside his frame, but at the same time, he is excluding most of the reality and portraying only a small portion of it.

This very act of elimination gives the documentary filmmaker his particular power to emote, persuade and sometimes even provoke. By editing the film, the maker constantly persuades the audience to go through a recording of a series of events in a particular time sequence. We must remember that the very invention of film is based on the fact that somebody wanted to document motion in pictures and this gave rise to the motion picture or film. The very first piece of film by Lumiere Brothers is called: “Workers leaving the Lumiere Factory”.

It was screened on 22nd March, 1895. It was a documentary footage of the workers leaving a factory after work. This film presented to the world the idea that reality can be captured and played back by the device of cinematography. The term ‘documentary’ was first used by John Grierson in 1926. He was writing review for Robert Flaherty’s film “Moana”. He wrote that the film had ‘documentary’ value. Thus from the very beginning ‘documentary’ meant a very specific type of film.

The propagandist approach can be seen from very early approaches like Dziga Vertov’s “Kino Pravda” (literally means cinematic truth) newsreel series. Vertov believed that a certain sequence of shots taken from samples of real life, will create a meaning, not observable by the naked eye. Thus by interpolating shots and inter-titles, he tried to etch meaning out of seemingly normal life. In the Nazi propagandist films during the time period between two World Wars, like Leni Reifenstahl’s “Triumph of the Will” (1935) we see groundbreaking techniques of aerial photography, camera movement, wide-angle lenses and coupled with that a fantastic use of music to create movement and rhythm.

It contained excerpts from speeches delivered by various Nazi leaders including Hitler, interspersed with footages of the gathering of about 70 million Nazi supporters. The film actually tried to portray a vision which was envisioned by Hitler: Germany as a great power having Hitler as its great leader. Thus over the ages we have noticed a tendency in filmmakers to make films where truth is portrayed in a peculiarly forceful manner. The film “Who Killed Vincent Chin” directed by Christine Choy and Renee Tajima-Pena begins with the testimony of the stripper Starlene who was

...Download file to see next pages Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Are the documentary filmmakers trying to persuade you of a certain Assignment”, n.d.)
Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/family-consumer-science/1414053-are-the-documentary-filmmakers-trying-to-persuade
(Are the Documentary Filmmakers Trying to Persuade You of a Certain Assignment)
https://studentshare.org/family-consumer-science/1414053-are-the-documentary-filmmakers-trying-to-persuade.
“Are the Documentary Filmmakers Trying to Persuade You of a Certain Assignment”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/family-consumer-science/1414053-are-the-documentary-filmmakers-trying-to-persuade.
  • Cited: 0 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Are the documentary filmmakers trying to persuade you of a certain point of view

The impact Advertising has on brand preference for consumers in the mobile phone market

This has led to a state where mobile phone companies are trying to include as many features into the small gadget and convert it into a workstation or computer which can be used for talking, listening radio programmes, watching movies, storing mp3 songs and of course in the form of a phone as well....
25 Pages (6250 words) Essay

Documentary

What these texts have in common is that they all intend to persuade their audience to a particular viewpoint but that is where the similarities end.... (Rosenthal 1996, 31-35) So while the genre title 'f 'documentary' is a useful one for Video Store owners, the conventions and styles used by documentary filmmakers vary so greatly that the term documentary really does not give the viewer much 'f an idea as to what to expect from their viewing experience.... Because 'f this, there is no one film maker behind the documentary who has creative control, as the institution funding the project is primarily concerned with documenting it's cause and this drives the content and often the style 'f presentation....
6 Pages (1500 words) Personal Statement

What Is a Documentary

The paper explores facts about the making of documentaries … An example of filmmakers somehow manipulating the media which they are using in order to reflect a certain point is the use of sad or slow music at precisely the right moment.... nbsp; When filmmakers introduce an especially strong point of the topic which may be viewed as unfortunate or sad by the filmmaker, they will often introduce sad music In most cases, the person conducting the documentary is already convinced of the point that they are trying to make....
4 Pages (1000 words) Essay

Theory and Practice in a Documentary

In this respect, the documentary- 'Panorama: British Schools, Islamic Rules' has succeeded in exploring the rapid growth of new private schools in Britain influenced by the teachings of the extremists and fundamental groups, It is a documentary to investigate into the act of segregation conducted by the one faith school.... nbsp; the documentary begins with an investigating spirit.... The paper "Theory and Practice in a documentary" presents that a documentary is a filmmaker's address to the contemporary world and to the issues that are central introspects to the society....
7 Pages (1750 words) Essay

The Persuaders - a 2004 PBS Documentary

I chose Apple among a sea of other brands to buy into an identity and become a part of a certain social group.... Such brand managers seek to awaken the hidden desires of consumers by their magical words to influence their decision making when they go to a store to buy a certain product.... Now, focus is laid on explaining what is meant by a product and how it can help consumers acquire a certain identity.... Personal view on whether the techniques discussed improve the lives of consumers or represent an invasion of privacy and manipulation of consumer tastes: The video shows that in order to establish a magical and long-lasting connection with consumers, many brands have begun to use very surprising techniques like hiring of linguists and brain researchers as brand managers....
2 Pages (500 words) Essay

Analysis of Documentary Film

"Analysis of documentary Film" paper examines "The Filmed Century" by Joel Black, "Sans Soleil" by Hayao Yamenko, "Bontoc Eulogy" by James Latham, "Bontoc Eulogy", "The Third Memory" by John Wojtowicz, and "The Blair Witch Project" by in Burkittsville.... (6) The plot is loosely based on a scenario in which three students undertake a documentary on the legendary Blair Witch and travel to Burkittsville, Maryland for this purpose.... (Higley and Weinstock, 54) The mocking of docudramas is manifested by the blurred lines between documentary and that the horrified actors are merely performing and not responding to actual events and experiences....
5 Pages (1250 words) Assignment

Points of Views of Early Documentary Filmmakers

This paper “Points of Views of Early Documentary Filmmakers” aims at showing how documentary films present their subjects from a distinct perspective and point of view as well as the identification of the points of views of the early documentary filmmakers.... The paper also gives a discourse on some important facets of the making of documentaries such as the ethical dilemmas that the creators of the documentaries face, which affect their points of views as shown within the documentary....
20 Pages (5000 words) Research Paper

The Concept of Objectivity

?? Objectivity has meaning but it is greatly influenced by the filmmaker's point of view via perceptions, emotions, etc.... thereby determining the extent they can be biased or slant their point of view.... German filmmaker, Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will (1935) catapulted the documentary as mode of propaganda designed to specifically argue a point and influence public opinion.... Filmed in the United States, the Middle East, and Europe, the documentary explores how within the past thirty years each religion has immensely exerted its political might....
8 Pages (2000 words) Essay
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us