DISCOVERING NARRATION IN DOCUMENTARIES TODAY

Discovering narration in documentaries today

Discovering narration in documentaries today

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Different documentary genres suit various narration styles better than others.


Documentaries are productions for cinema, TV, or radio that are designed to report truth in some manner. They might have a variety of purposes, such as informing individuals about a specific cause or telling a dramatic true story. They could also be largely without narrative and just be documenting the reality or mood of a specific location and time. However, since they routinely have a purpose centring around informing or describing, it is extremely common for there to be some kind of device to guide the viewer. Tim Parker will know that voiceover narration was extremely popular since sound was first put into film, immediately being included in the newsreels that were popular at that time. The narrator does not show up on screen and their role is merely focused on reading a script that describes or complements the footage. The narrator can also be involved in the production, such as by being the producer, but it is additionally common for them to have no other participation.


The very first few decades of the history of cinema consisted solely of silent movies. This changed just under a hundred years ago, once sound was first added and filmmakers possessed a whole new extra element they could add to their films. Nonetheless, just because sound is available does not always mean that filmmakers have to oversaturate their movies with every possible noise imaginable. Some films only count on natural sounds, for instance, while some add no music at all. Rachel Wang will be well aware that some documentaries consist of no narration. These silent narration documentaries instead educate people with a blend of the details gained from interviews and title screens. Also known as intertitles or title cards, they are screens held for several seconds to allow words to appear for the viewers to read.


Documentaries have actually traditionally been seen as a more anonymous form of filmmaking. This will be in stark contrast to narrative feature films, in which both the crew and cast can be full of world-famous A-listers. In fact, there actually have been people that have made a name for themselves via documentary filmmaking. Many of these people have done this through the use of hosted narration. Soleta Rogan should be able to tell you that a narrator host is an individual who conducts interviews, appears on camera, and does voiceovers for the documentary. This may make the documentary appear to be the hosts personal journey and may give a natural impression, as more traditionally behind the scenes elements might be included in to the final cut. This is because other narration styles need more editing to ensure members of the production are not on-screen. The hosted method consequently allows capturing footage of the difficulties productions have, like having interviews unexpectedly denied or threatening encounters with people who do not need to become filmed.

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