documentary films
Real-life movies
Documentary films are nonfiction motion pictures that present real events, people, or issues rather than fictional narratives.
The genre ranges from observational films that follow subjects without intervention to advocacy pieces arguing a position.
Documentaries may use interviews, archival footage, narration, or reenactments: We watched a documentary about climate change.
The shortened form documentary serves as both noun and adjective.
- biographicalAbout a person's history
- cinéma véritéNaturalistic documentary approach
- archival footagePreserved historical recordings
- found footageGenre mimicking discovered recordings
- ethnographicDescribing cultures systematically
expository · social justice · interviews · observational · behind the scenes · on location · oral histories · indigenous stories · reflexive · fly-on-the-wall · hidden camera · Ken Burns · investigative · subject matter · participatory · environmental issues · voice over · war history
- cultural heritagefolklore, traditions, customs, folk music revival, museum collections
- film termsauteur, genre, celluloid, mise-en-scene, 35mm
- DVD bin moviesB-movies, mockbusters, creature features
- modern cinemasuperhero films, Marvel, reboots, sequels, prequels
- Psychology Mediapsychology courses, case studies, behavioral research
- Eastern Bloc MediaPravda, propaganda films, newsreels
documentary filmsfictional narratives
Imagined stories in prose
narrative fiction · feature films · fairy tales · make-believe · blockbusters
documentary filmsexperimental cinema
Unconventional, non-commercial filmmaking
documentary filmspopcorn movies
Entertaining, undemanding cinema
crowd-pleasers · guilty pleasures · rom-coms · summer blockbusters