Documentary "mini task"

A documentary is a factual media production that explores a certain subject and they go into depths about what goes on in that subject. Sometimes documentaries represent the subject in such a way that they make people question if it is fact or fiction. The what that I would define a documentary would be a film that goes into depth about the activities that took place at a certain time.

Expository
An expository documentary is when during the entire thing there is a voice over talking to the viewer. These documentaries are made to persuade the viewer and they propose a very strong argument. A good example of an expository documentary would be "Frozen Planet" by David Attenborough. This programme is an expository documentary because you don't really see David Attenborough in the actual episode itself but he is giving a voice over the entire time to give you facts.

Observational
An observational documentary (AKA fly on the wall) is when they don't acknowledge the fact that a documentary is happening and you just observe what is happening. An example of this would be "Metallica's Some Kind of Monster." This documentary is about the struggle that the band went through when making there album "St. Anger." This is a bit of a weird documentary because they do acknowledge that the cameras are there but the band act completely normal around them. They filmed them for a couple of years and they just went through all of the struggles that they had. For example when the lead singer, James Hetfield, went to rehab for his alcohol problems. In the documentary they hire a therapist so that they can all get their feelings across to each other while the cameras are rolling so that we can watch and see how much trouble they had and how much they went through just to please the fans.

Interactive
An interactive documentary is when the filmmaker's presence is known and they actually follow the crew around and asks questions and there is an interaction between the interviewee and the presenter. Arguments can also take place during these types of documentary as people all have different views. A good example of this would be Louis Theroux when he did a documentary on Scientology called "My Scientology Movie" which had him going around asking what it is like being involved with Scientology.

Reflective

A reflective documentary is where the filmmaker attempts to expose the conventions of documentary to the audience. They consists of shots that will build up and then have a deeper meaning behind them. An example of this would be "Powaqqatsi" which is a sequence of shots that have a very deep meaning.

Performative

A performative documentary usually uses re-enactments and are usually exaggerated to make everything look a lot more dramatic. A lot of people believe that these documentaries are not truthful. Some people also believe that they are just the exaggerated truth which is what I believe they are except for when they change what happens in the end. An example of a performative documentary would be "Paranormal Witness" which is when they have people talking about their paranormal experiences and they also have people re-enacting what happened.   

I feel like the documentary filmmaker should give the audience factual information and only factual information. Fair enough that performative is exaggerated but it also tells you the truth. If they are not doing this can it really be called a documentary? When a documentary doesn't give you factual information it is basically just a mockumentary and the viewers do not understand if what they are hearing and seeing is the truth.