A good documentary film should be provocative - it should make responders think and wonder about the issue presented.

John Grierson, a pioneer British filmmaker, defined a documentary as the creative treatment of actuality (or reality). Argument has raged ever since as to just how ‘creative’ such treatments of reality should be. Documentaries present facts about a subject using real events, persons or places.  They creatively interpret or comment on those realities and people’s concerns about them to create a representation of reality.

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China's Web Junkies

Can video games and the Internet be addictive? Are teenagers, especially young men, particularly susceptible? And if Internet addiction is real, what kinds of treatment methods would be most effective to provide help to those who need it? These are some of the tough questions the short documentary “China’s Web Junkies” investigates.

60 Second Documentaries

 Horror Claymation | Trent Shy // 60 Second Docs 

Critique this documentary by completing these sentences. 

1 - The subject matter of this short documentary film is  . . . 

2 - The main subject was introduced through 

• Filmed footage  

• Through still images 

• Text on the screen 

• Narration 

• Interview voice-over 

• Presenter voice-over 

 3 - The most common locations used in the film are . .. 

4 - The footage used to create the documentary included: 

• Face to face interviews 

• Observational footage 

• Archival or historical film 

• Still photographs 

• Presenter talking to camera 

 5 - Other documentary techniques used to tell this story include:  

• Music 

• Dramatic re-creation or dramatization 

• Animation 

6 - Overall this documentary was effective in  

Dog Hair Clothes | Knit Your Dog // 60 Second Docs 

Critique this documentary by completing these sentences. 

1 - The subject matter of this short documentary film is  . . . 

2 - The main subject was introduced through 

• Filmed footage  

• Through still images 

• Text on the screen 

• Narration 

• Interview voice-over 

• Presenter voice-over 

 3 - The most common locations used in the film are . .. 

4 - The footage used to create the documentary included: 

• Face to face interviews 

• Observational footage 

• Archival or historical film 

• Still photographs 

• Presenter talking to camera 

 5 - Other documentary techniques used to tell this story include:  

• Music 

• Dramatic re-creation or dramatization 

• Animation 

6 - Overall this documentary was effective in