Mediation – the control of how the spectator/viewer perceives the footage through the producers interpretation

Distortion – any alteration in the shape or proportions of the normal image at any stage of the photographic process 

Hyperreality – a visual language as it works better with images in order to give a hyperreal experience to the audience

Verisimilitude – the believability or semblance of truth in a work, even if that work doesn’t reflect real-life accurately

Bias – bias can occur on purpose or because the creator simply didn’t seek out balanced sources, ask deep questions, do good research or provide enough context

Objectivity – an objective perspective tends to use wider shots to show all the characters and/or a large portion of the story world within the frame, with no focus on one particular character

Selection/Editing – prepare for publication by correcting, condensing, or otherwise modifying it

Verisimilitude is used by filmmakers to mediate aspects of reality.

Representing Facts:

Mediation – Camera person getting between the viewer and the subject.

Distortion – twisting/changing footage to change/ alter the message/ reality.

Hyperreality – an artificially created copy that is perceived as somehow more real than the real thing, or too real to be real: modelled on reality but with an exaggerated intensity.

Verisimilitude –  verisimilitude means basically “similarity to the truth“. Most fiction writers and filmmakers aim at some kind of verisimilitude to give their stories an air of reality. 

Bias – challenges us to confront our hidden biases and understand what we risk when we follow our gut. Producer having an agender, how that alters the spectators perception.

Objectivity – a documentary of people who agree in some measurements about the terms and conditions that underscore this distanced presence, although different communities will assign different meanings and definition.

Selection/ Electing –

In David Attenborough’s ‘Blue Planet’ the producer/ narrator holds an environmental bias; being that of the detrimental effects of global warming and pollution. This is then emphasized to create sympathy through the use of narrated mediation, encouraging the spectator to have a more immersive and directed relationship with the subjects of the documentary.

Representing facts

Mediation: The process by which an agent, structure, or other formal element transfers something from one place to another.

Distortion: Any alteration in the shape or proportions of the normal image at any stage of the photographic process

Hyperreality: the inability of consciousness to distinguish reality from a simulation of reality

verisimilitude: the believability of a plot.

Bias: a tendency to believe that some people, ideas, etc., are better than others that usually results in treating some people unfairly.

Objectivity:

Selection Editing

mediation: the intervention of a third person in a documentary.

distortion: The altering of what’s on screen in a documentary.

hyperreality: re-enacting real events in a way that’s exaggerated.

verisimilitude: The sense of realism within a documentary.

Bias: when the film maker alters a documentaries tone based on their beliefs.

objectivity: a documentary which doesn’t have one set of beliefs but the whole picture.

selection/editing:

Expository Mode – Uses heavily researched and constructed to inform and persuade, convincing audience to agree with a certain point of view.

Example – The Dust Bowl (Ken Burns, 2012)

Reflexive Mode – focuses on the relationship between the filmmaker and the audience, pushing viewers to reflect on their perceptions

Example – Chronicle of a Summer (Jean Rouch & Edgar Morin, 1961)

Poetic Mode – presents patterns and associations to create meaning and evoke an emotional response from the audience.

Example – Rain (Mannus Franken & Joris Ivens, 1929)

Participatory Mode – emphasises the filmmaker’s own involvement with the subject

Example – Photographic Memory (Ross McElwee, 2012)

Observational Mode – A type of documentary filmmaking that aims to record realistic, everyday life without intrusion. So the filmmaker watches what happens in the world around them without interfering.

Example – High School (Frederick Wiseman, 1968)

Performative Mode – Focuses on the filmmaker’s involvement with their subject, using their personal experience or relationship with the subject as a jumping-off point for exploring truths.

Example – Fahrenheit 9/11 (Michael Moore, 2004)

Mockumentary – a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a documentary.

Example – Borat (Larry Charles, 2006)