John Grierson coined the term documentary in the 1930’s describing it as ‘the creative treatment of actuality’.[1]

Documentaries are considered as being informative, factual television shows that enlighten consumers through the knowledge of the creator. Traditional documentaries were solely for this purpose, education. In recent times however, documentaries have adapted to the demand of consumers and now offer a more entertaining viewing whilst still maintaining the fiction that it is entirely factual. That which was considered to be of an academic nature now becomes more reliant on dramatic scenes and satisfying the consumer’s need for aesthetic sensations. An example of this could be ‘Ed Stafford: Naked and Marooned’ this documentary offers the consumer an insight into the struggles castaways endure and how to survive time in the wilderness. The location chosen for the first episode of this was the scenic mountainsides of Venezuela, the views displayed are aesthetically pleasing and the aerial shots offer the audience a view they will never have seen before. This satisfies the consumer’s need for aesthetic sensations whilst increasing the dramatic nature of the shots by showing the audience the scale of the task that is being undertaken.

This is idea of documentaries submitting to demand is also considered by Richard Kilborn in his ‘A walk on the wild side’ study, 'In today’s heavily commercialized broadcasting environment, wildlife programming – like all other TV genres – has become increasingly subject to the demands of ratings-conscious schedulers.'

Implying that as television progresses as does the demands and expectations of the viewers and this must be satisfied in order to stay on air. This commercialization could signal the end of traditional documentaries as consumers expect more than basic facts, consumers search for a narrative in order to stimulate their interest.

‘Narrative is a fundamental way we make sense of the world.’[2]

Documentaries may seem like they are there simply to convey information in a condensed manner however without a narrative the information could be presented in an erratic and unconventional way. By adding a narrative documentaries can offer information in an interesting way and this also allows for more efficient screen time as consumers will connect the dots without the need for endless explanations. Narrative can also convey information that could be complex to explain in a simplistic way. For example in Naked and Marooned Ed Stafford acts as the character through which the viewer can experience the perils of castaways. When he is sick the consumer can see this and it evokes stronger emotions than simply stating that ‘Ed Stafford is sick, he shouts out in pain’. Seeing this character sick and alone on an island evokes greater sympathy from the audience, which can lead to a greater viewing experience.

'Most of what has been said about causality pertains to the plot's direct presentation of causes and effects.'[3] This relates to the earlier point in that as a character Ed Stafford does present the causes and effects in a very direct method as we are led to presume that what is happening to him is entirely real and the pain and reactions of this character are genuine. This ‘realness’ adds to the narrative in ways that fictional films cannot achieve.

‘If narrative depends so heavily on cause and effect, then what can function as causes in a narrative? Usually, the agents of cause and effect are characters. By triggering and reacting to events, characters play roles within the film’s formal system’.[4] This provides the basis on the concept of characterisation, by having a singular character the audience is forced to personalise with him and this in turn causes his emotions to have a furthered impact on the audience when compared with the emotions of a group, as his vulnerability is emphasised and the personalisation is more concentrated. By having Ed Stafford as a character the nature of the documentary is self explanatory as there is no need to waste screen time explaining how the perils of being on a deserted island can affect a human, instead the audience can see this and make the connections much more efficiently.

The idea of a character could be described as ruining the purity of John Grierson’s original idea of what a documentary should be ‘The creative treatment of actuality’, involvement of a character will usually increase the dramatic effect and this is not the idea of a documentary. A pure version of a documentary would be the presentation of unbiased information however the mediation involved in broadcasting a text would sully the purity and add bias without any intention of this. A narrator seems like the best option in terms of offering information without as much dramatic effect.

‘Making a television series is, of course, a collaborative process, but so long as viewers have an appetite for programmes that speak with the authority of a single on-screen voice the popularity of the authored documentary remains secure.’[5], the authored documentary takes this process of narration and adds a more organised feel to it. Authored documentaries uses narration from a singular presenter that of which will become one of the key characteristics of the show. Sir David Attenborough is most renowned for this as his later career consists more of authored documentaries than on-screen presentation. ‘Kenneth Clark, whose landmark 13-part series Civilisation (BBC, 1969) set about explaining the development of the Western world through its art, and in the process set a benchmark in terms of both popularity and intellectual authority. Viewed today, the series looks slow and excessively formal, but it helped pave the way for a series of equally important productions in a style that remains largely unchanged to this day’, this formality is what presents the information or the ‘actuality’ in the purest of methods. It’s what adds the effect of ‘intellectual authority’, which satisfies the genre characteristics of documentary as being informative and factual. The development of this genre over time has led to it becoming increasingly more based on the entertainment factors than it’s basic nature of being informative.
 
[1] Carly Sandy (Media Magazine 2009)
[2] (Film Art an Intro. Thompson/Bordwell)
[3] - Film Art: An Introduction (Thompson/Bordwell).
[4] - Film Art: An Introduction (Thompson/Bordwell).
[5] ‘The Authored Documentary’- Anthony Clark (www.screenonline.org)

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