Codes and Conventions

Documentaries have a wide range of typical codes and coneventions; it is important to know these so we know what makes a successful documentary.

• Documentaries use real facts along with dramatization. Documentaries cannot be considered to include the complete sacred truth, but they can also not be considered to be complete exaggerations.
• Documentaries always use an element of interview - evidence is needed to prove the truth of the exposition.
• Mixed documentaries use a combination of cutaways, voiceovers, reconstructions and interviews in order to use variety to excite the viewer.
• Camera angles used mainly include close ups and long shots in order to contrast the thoughts and themes of the documentary.
• Cutaways are often used to excite the reader and add a bit of variety to the whole documentary
• Narrative structure of a documentary begins with an exposition - a question which entices the viewer, and makes them want to continue watching.
• Narrative structure continues with conflict in the middle - there is something which makes the audience question the question.
• Narrative structure ends with a solid ending, which offers an explanation to the original exposition
• However, documentaries can also end with an unclear ending, but this is less popular recently as audiences want a clear answer to their questions and feel unsatisfied if they are left without an answer.
• When every interviewee is being interviewed, the graphics used have always been simple, as many creators like to focus on the discussion of the topic more than the graphics; The interviewees are always told to never look directly into the camera. The interviewees are positioned towards the camera so the eye line is 1/3 down towards the camera.
• Cut aways are always used where necessary.
• Variety of camera angles are always used.
• Natural sounds are always used when the interviewees are being interviewed.
• Voice overs are used where relevant, this is specifically obvious when the interviewee is discussing an issue and the image of the topic is been shown towards the viewers of the documentary.
• Music beds and sounds effects are used to create a specific mood.
• "Experts" are always chosen when interviewing, this is to make the documentary stronger in the sense of facts and figures are 100% right. The experts are also named at all times.
• A successful documentary tends to use the mixed style, so it has everything that a viewer will enjoy viewing.
• Evidence is used, to make the documentary more factual and allows the viewers to understand the basics of the documentary just by the view of the evidence.
• Reconstructions are used in documentaries, this allows the viewers to see the point of view of the creators perspective.
• The mise en scene in every documentary was always relevant, showing that all documentaries where done professionally.
• Every documentary contains a relevant title and the documentary has always included an opening title.
• Vox pops are used when relevant. Vox pops are where you choose a location and ask people questions based on the topic of discussion. This is seen in many documentaries. It is also called opportunity sampling.
• The questions asked by the interviewers have always been simple, direct questions based on the topic. They have never posed personal questions.
• A documentary will have archieve footage to show different materials of the topic. The expostion will always be clear, and the theme is always important