Welcome

Mr. Goffard
kpgoffa@ilstu.edu
vpsakpgoffa@exchange.ilstu.

What Do You Think?

Documentari
es

What is a documentary?
Narrative Based Film

Non Fiction; Slice of Life; Factual truth

Propagandistic (non-objective)

What is the Aim of a

Documentary?
What distinguishes a documentary is the portrayal of
sound and images of actuality John Corner, 1995

Present Something Real

with Evidence
What do Documentaries Include?

What do those things do?

Sometimes,
Reconstructions Are
Used
What does a reconstruction do?

Why do we need reconstructions?

Reconstructions are not current events!

What Should a
Documentary Include?
Documentaries present facts about a subject using
real events, people, places then creatively interpret
all comments on those realities and peoples
concerns Peter Mayeux

Two Things Are Clear

1. Recorded Sound = Actual

Reality/Experiences

2. Socially Constructed Arguments

They are NOT Current

Affairs
What makes a current affair different then
a documentary?

Should Include Truth

and Reality
Difficult to present 100% Truth and Reality.
Why?

What do you think are the most popular

subjects for documentaries in the US?

Caution, However
Controversial Documentaries are NOT
Popular

Hard to get Advertisers to Advertise During

It. Why?

Documentaries Work
on a Persons Right to
Know

A Documentaries Object
is to Inform
Can you think of any examples why this
might be?

If something is exploited, then change

might be near.
Cathy Come Home by Ken Loach

A Very Broad Type of

Film

If you could make a

documentary, what
would it be based on?

Trading Card
Assignment

You will Create A Trading Card for the

Dream Documentary you want to make

You will each get a half sheet of

cardstock or construction paper, you
choose!
On one side will be the image (you
create it!) and on the other will be the
information.

For Day One, You will begin your trading card by

answering the following:
Title
What is your documentary based on?
What category, that we discuss, would it fall under?
What is its point or aim??
Is it made through actual footage or reconstructions?
How would you deal with truth and reality?
Is it helping advance a persons right to know? If yes, then
what is it advancing it in?

You have the rest of class to work on this, if you dont

finish, then take it home and finish it for tomorrow.
Make sure to bring these back because we will be using
them!
Questions?

Example
Front

Back

On a Sheet of Paper
Please write down 5 things you either
learned or still have questions about at the
end of this lesson.