How do we know whether a film is a documentary? A documentary usually comes labelled as such. The filmmakers may also tell us through publicity, and press coverage reinforces the message as well. In turn, the labeling of something as a ‘documentary’ leads the viewer to expect that the persons, places and events shown to us exist or have existed. Staging events for the camera need not make the film fictional or fake. Regardless of the details of its production, the documentary filmmaker asks us to assume that the film presents trustworthy information about its subject.

 

There are a number of documentary genres. The most common is the compilation film, produced by assembling images from archival sources. The direct-cinema documentary characteristically records and ongoing event as it happens, with minimal interference by the filmmaker. Another common type is the nature documentary such as Winged Migration, which used in-flight cameras to soar and float along with birds. A portrait documentary centers on aspects of the life of a compelling person.  Very often a documentary pursues several of these genre options at once.

 

Many documentaries organize their films as narratives, as we follow a certain story or premise. The filmmaker can choose to employ non-narrative types of form as well. It might be designed to convey categorized information, thus called categorical form, or the filmmaker may want to make an argument that will convince the spectator of something which normally draws upon rhetorical form. A categorical film often begins by identifying it’s subject before looking at each category. These films usually use simple patterns of development such as moving from small to large, local to national or personal to public i.e. film on butterflies may begin with smaller species. Rhetorical film addresses the viewer openly trying to move him/her to a new intellectual conviction, and the subject of the film is usually not an issue of scientific truth but a matter of opinion. The film often appeals to our emotions rather than only using factual evidence and often attempts to persuade the viewer to make a choice.