Documentary film (nonfiction)

Frame of PhD Gheorghe Marinescu's science films (1899).

A documentary film is a nonfictional motion picture intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record.

Such films were originally shot on film stock—the only medium available—but now include video and digital productions that can be either direct-to-video, made into a TV show or released for screening in cinemas.

"Documentary" has been described as a "filmmaking practice, a cinematic tradition, and mode of audience reception" that is continually evolving and is without clear boundaries.

In the News

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  Documentary film maker Ridley Scott, shown here doing research for his acclaimed documentary film Alien.

Fiction cross-reference

• Alien (documentary)
• Do Blade-Runners Shave Their Electric Sheep?
• Noctua's Revenge (documentary)
• Ridley Scott
• Weaponizing Spirograph

Nonfiction cross-reference

External links:

• Documentary film
• Documentary film @ Wikipedia
• Media Education Foundation - Films That Inspire Critical Reflection on the Social, Political, & Cultural Impact of American Mass Media