Seminal Theories & Documentary Concept:
Documentary Film Then and Now
When people watch a documentary, no matter the subject, they will find that this kind of film is different from a dramatic film full of special effects, superb acting, and plot manipulation. As we all know, documentary films in today’s society take real life as the creative material and real people and events as the expression object, presenting a non-fiction story. However, at the beginning of the development of the documentary, there was no such concept. Although documentary films are not fictional, they still undergo creative artistic treatment. The latest documentary film concept has evolved and been explored by many filmmakers over the years. The grateful seminal theories of the documentary film have constructed a variety of narrative strategies in modern society.
“Documentary “originally means “document, certificate,” which cannot be forged. As a noun, it has come to mean documentary and factual film today. However, there was no such concept when cinema was born in the late 19th century. This documentary genre was discovered and named by John Grierson. John Grierson first used it in his review of Robert J. Flaherty’s films in The April 1926 issue of The New York Sun. John Grierson was known as the father of documentary and proposed one of the most influential definitions in history:Documentary film was a creative treatment of actuality(Grierson). In this concept, Grierson emphasizes both dramatic and poetic editing techniques and the authenticity of the film’s content. This definition seems reasonable and captures the quality of a documentary, but it is vague, and even contradictory. Whether true or false, movies are artificially constructed for creators. Are there rules one should follow to make an excellent and actual documentary?
The more widely a theory describes its possible applications, the more sparse it describes specific details. The documentary concept pioneered by Grierson is full of contradictions between “reality” and “aesthetic creativity”(Grierson). It still has a solid and stable foundation. Documentaries have indeed been following the rule of “non-fiction” throughout history. Such films are not artificially created, and actors do not dress up as characters. They have their names, and the subject matter of movies is not fiction, but a fact, a representation of existence. Directors want to tap into something tangible and powerful with cameras and recordings. The theory of non-fiction does not describe what documentary is but how documentary is constituted, so the composition also included the aesthetic value of film art. There are always new forms and styles of works in documentary development to challenge people’s understanding of the documentary.
In natural science, the principles of truth ought to be confirmed by observation(Linnaeus). Documentary films are based on the above specific concept of non-fiction, but the truth is not an absolute concept from a philosophical point of view. Similarly, in documentaries, the actual attributes also change with the audience’s understanding. Whenever events are presented, they have always presented from a certain ‘vision.’ A point of view is chosen, a certain way of seeing things, a certain angle, whether ‘real’ historical facts are concerned or fictitious events. This focalization is, then, the relation between a subject vision and that which is perceived. An author of direct content may hope to maintain that same direct content perception(Bal).
From this standpoint, it is no longer important whether the film’s content is a direct record of reality. The only important thing is that the audience can connect the film’s content with the natural world and be sure that the film’s content is a direct description of the real world. Defining documentary from the perspective of audience acceptance brings great liberation to the expression and strategy of documentary in modern society.
In the Contemporary documentary film, narrative strategy is a significant expression. It takes real characters, environments, and events as essential narrative elements. Narratology is cultural artifacts that tell a story. However, storytelling has become a popular trend from the audience’s perspective. When the audience directly perceives a certain content in the documentary, the story-based plot and narrative mode is easier to understand. Suppose a documentary on how Newton’s second law came into being is devoted to the dry definition of the theory. In that case, viewers will think they are watching a science-education channel rather than an interesting movie. However, suppose the director adds the story of Newton observing the apple falling to the ground based to Newton’s definition. It is a story-based narrative, which can significantly shorten the perceptual relationship between the audience and the documentary content. Therefore, the storytelling narrative strategy has the compatible characteristics of “storytelling” and “reality.” In the documentary category, the story emphasizes the actual existence of the event. It emphasizes the dramatic effect of the event, which can attract people, infect people and make people think. For a viewer, the perception of a discursive narrative, rather than a totalizing one, is more appealing, open and democratic(Bal).
For contemporary documentary makers, the story-based narrative strategy needs to meet the rules of multiple elements. It mainly includes the processing of narrative materials, the design of story plots, and the characterization of the subject matter. These elements need to deal with the relationship between “real” and “story-like” narration, the most fundamental aesthetic of contemporary documentary films.
Firstly, narrative material needs the creator to have the quality of loving life and passion for artistic pursuit; The creator picks a theme and works it to exhaustion… the subject must be something you truly love or truly hate. The artist is a professional see-er(Lange). It is necessary to observe whether the creation subject matter can meet the audience’s needs and bring social influence on the audience’s psychology. Secondly, in the design of the story plot, we can pay attention to creative techniques such as exposition, foreshadowing, and climax. Try to highlight the drama of the story plot, give the audience emotional engagement, and pay attention to rationality to show the value of the documentary transmission. Finally, as for the characterization of the subject, it is necessary to show all the surface and hidden personality levels of the characters. The “story-like” narrative expression needs multiple on-site reappearances, enriching the characters’ images and matching them with interesting plots. Every film is a documentary. Even the most whimsical of fiction gives evidence of the culture that produced it and reproduces the likenesses of the people who perform within it(Nichols).
With the continuous renewal of the concept and theory of openness of documentary film from the beginning to now, documentary film has gradually achieved self-transcendence in aesthetic concept, documentary style, expression strategy, and other aspects, and constantly adapted to the changes of The Times and social development needs. The storytelling narrative strategy has been favored and recognized by today’s film industry. It analyzes the connotation of story-narrating based on people’s spiritual and cultural pursuits and multi-cultural trends. It seeks the rules of documentary story-narrating strategy to promote the sustainable development of documentary theory better and give artists more space for innovation.
Works Cited
Bal,Mieke. Narratology Introduction to the Theory of Narrative. University of Toronto Press,2009.
Grierson, John. First Principles of Documentary.Edinburgh journal Cinema Quarterly, 1932.
Lange,Dorothea.Quotes by Dorothea Lange.1939.
https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/dorothea-lange-quotes-by-dorothea-lange/3159/
Linnaeus, Carl. Botanical Philosophy.Ed. 1, Stockholm & Amsterdam, 1751.
Nichols,Bill. Introduction to Documentary.Indiana University Press, 2017