An observational documentary is a non-intrusive way of making a film without interfering with what happens to the people in the documentary. This means that the camera is purely observing what people are doing in a particular situation without direction from the film maker. An observational documentary is used to observe people’s real life activities and to represent the experiences of people that they have around the world. An example of a observational documentary is Baraka which is a non-intrusive documentary on cultures around the world. The movie has amazing cinematography with no dialogue in it. An example of Baraka being non intrusive is when it conveys different cultures and signifying what they’re doing without interfering.
Below is my observational documentary I made of the Les Varendes sixth form centre, which uses framing and composition to convey a sense of unease and discomfort.
below are a few of my favourite shots I made which connote different emotion:
This is one of my favourite shots as it creates a sense of edginess and disorientation as the shot is a canted angle/long shot. The shot also reflects how long the school really is due to the long corridors which almost makes it look endless.
This is also one of my favourite shots because the picture is taken in a depth of field while also signifying a wide shot, which creates a sense of isolation and remoteness in the surroundings. Reinforces the sheer size of the school. I also like the contrast signifed in this shot with the shadow and the light exemplifed as it creates a nice image.
Another one of my favourite shots was this shot, because it has a macabre image which creates a creapy and horrifying look to it with the close up shot. I also like the fact bright colours are signifed in this image, as it makes it stand out and makes it even more unsettling.
