John Grierson coined the term "documentary" in 1928 to describe films that documented real people and events factually. Documentaries use actual footage or reconstructions, sometimes with narration, to present facts about social issues and invite audiences to draw their own conclusions. Central to documentaries is their focus on and questioning of real people and events in a social context in a way that allows viewers to form opinions on the subjects depicted.

1. Genre Analysis and Themes

2. —John Grierson was the
person who came up
with the term
‘Documentary’ in 1928.

3. • The purpose of documentaries is to document something that
was factual and actually happened. The documentary can be
shown using real footage or a reconstruction. It can use a
narrators voice over to anchor the intended meaning or rely
on the participants of the event with perhaps an occasional
interjection by the narrator.

4. • Documentaries are not just about facts instead facts can be
used to create socially critical arguments, inviting the
audience to come to their own conclusions.

5. Central to documentaries are that they focus on and question
real people and events mainly in a social context placing the
audience in a position to form an opinion about who or what we
are viewing.