Documentary Mini Task

A documentary is a type of movie which uses pictures, video or interviews to provide a factual report on a particular subject.
Expository Documentary:
The key features of an expository documentary are a voice over which gives facts or arguments to pictures shown on screen giving them meaning or a caption and also directly speaks to the viewer, a series of images to compliment a voiceover. A good example of a expository documentary would be Night mail which is a documentary which follows a postal train's overnight journey to Scotland where the mail is sorted and delivered.
Observational Documentary:
The key features if an observational documentary are, a unobtrusive construction and constructions which present a slice of life, the film maker is an uninvolved by stander, the filmmaker is hidden from the audience, more centred on commentary, interviews etc., usually non judgemental and audiences decide what to think. A good example of a observational documentary would be We are the Lambeth Boys, which is a documentary which follows the life of the youth in Kennington London going to school work and the youth club.
Interactive documentary:
 The key features if an interactive documentary are, the film maker is a participant in the documentary, there is interaction with the film maker interviewees and the audience, arguments are usually presented, manipulation of text through editing is more apparent. A good example of an interactive documentary would be Louis and the Nazis in which Louis Theroux explores the effect of white supremacist's in America.
Reflexive Documentaries:
The key features of a reflexive documentary are, The filmmaker attempts to expose the conventions of the documentary, the construction of the texts are exposed and experimented with, documentary consists of shots that have captured everyday life. A good example of a reflexive documentary would be Powaqqatsi which is a documentary filled with shots of the earth and technology with no commentary which lets the user decide the meaning.
Performative documentary:
 The key features of a performative documentary are, emphasis is on presentation rather than content, use of re-enactments, exaggerated camera positions and soundtracks to help emerge the audience. A good example of a performative documentary would be The Thin Blue Line. Dramatization's and re-enactments are used to keep the audience interested and provide entertainment as well as information, if they were not used they would not be viewed as much as some of the subjects would be boring or harder to believe as re-enactments provide a certain reality to the documentary.

To conclude I believe that documentaries should provide factual information but also contain a certain entertainment factor to keep the user interested which will help get the point of  the documentary across.