2. John Carner – there are five central elements to documentaries which are:
Observation:- the programme makers pretend that the camera is
unseen or ignored by the people taking part in the events; e.g. It
places the audience as an “eye witness” to the events
The Interview:- TV documentaries rely on interviews. The interviewee
addresses the unseen interviewer instead of the audience. Interviews
are intercut with images of observation to illustrate what they are
talking about
Dramastation:- All documentaries use a sense of drama throughout the
observation element
Mis-en-scene:- documentary makers carefully compose shots so that
they contain images they want the audience to see
Explosion:- The line of argument, and the way the argument “unfolds”
3. Gatekeeping is about the selection and rejection of information
Gatekeeper = producers
Selected Information
Rejected
Information
4. Open vs. Closed
Open – where there are questions left unanswered (soap opera)
Closed – where no questions are left unanswered (finding nemo)
Single Strand vs. Multi-Strand
Single Strands – there is only one narrative thread (finding nemo)
Multi-Strands – more than one thread, and sometimes they do
converge but not always (soap opera)
Linear vs. Non-Linear
Linear – chronological order; e.g. Order of time – adverts
Non-Linear – doesn’t follow chronological order; e.g. Flash forward/
backward; e.g. The time travellers wife
Circular – at the end of the narrative has gone full circle; e.g.
Dead of Night
