Docufiction (or docu-fiction) is the cinematographic combination of documentary and fiction, this term often meaning narrative film. It is a film genre[1] which attempts to capture reality such as it is (as direct cinema or cinéma vérité) and which simultaneously introduces unreal elements or fictional situations in narrative in order to strengthen the representation of reality using some kind of artistic expression.[2]
More precisely, it is a documentary mixed with fictional elements,[3] in real time, filmed when the events take place, and in which the main character or characters—often portrayed by non-professional or amateur actors—are essentially playing themselves, or slightly fictionalized versions of themselves, in a fictionalized scenario. In this sense, docufiction may overlap to an extent with some aspects of the mockumentary format, but the terms are not synonymous.
A film genre in expansion, it is adopted by a number of experimental filmmakers.[citation needed]
The neologism docufiction[4] appeared at the beginning of the 21st century. It is now commonly used in several languages and widely accepted for classification by international film festivals.[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]
Originsedit
The term involves a way of making films already practiced by such authors as Robert Flaherty, one of the fathers of documentary,[14][15] and Jean Rouch, later in the 20th century.
In the domain of visual anthropology, the innovating role of Jean Rouch[25] allows one to consider him as the father of a subgenre called ethnofiction.[26][27] This term means: ethnographic documentary film with natives who play fictional roles. Making them play a role about themselves will help portray reality, which[28] will be reinforced with imagery. A non-ethnographic documentary with fictional elements uses the same method and, for the same reasons, may be called docufiction.
Docudrama and mockumentaryedit
In contrast, docudrama is usually a dramatized recreation of factual events in form of a documentary, at a time subsequent to the "real" events it portrays.[29] While docudrama can be confused with docufiction, "docudrama" refers specifically to film or other television recreations that dramatize certain events, often with actors. [citation needed]
A mockumentary is also a film or television show in which fictitious events are presented in documentary format, sometimes a recreation of factual events after they took place or a comment on current events, typically satirical, comedic or even dramatic.[30] Whereas mockumentaries are usually fully scripted comedies or dramas that merely adopt some aspects of documentary format as a framing device, docufictions are usually not scripted, instead placing the participants in a fictionalized scenario while portraying their own genuine reactions and their own improvisational dialogue and character development.
^An Introduction to Genre Theory Archived November 18, 2011, at the Wayback Machine by Daniel Chandler at Aberystwyth University
^A creative treatment of actuality – article by Peter Biesterfeld at Videomaker, 08/07/2015
^Il difficile rapporto tra fiction e non fiction che si concretizza nella docu-fiction (The difficult relationship between fiction and non-fiction patent in docufiction) – thesis in Italian by Laura Marchesi, Faculty of Communication Sciences (Università degli Studi di Pavia) at Tesionline, 2005/06
^What is docufiction? – See Section II, pages 37 to 75 (four chapters) Archived September 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine of the thesis by Prof. Theo Mäusli
^Oscilloscope 'Howl' for Off Beat Docu-Fiction Sundance Selection Archived December 27, 2011, at the Wayback Machine at Ion Cinema
^Docufiction Archived 2011-09-01 at the Wayback Machine at several film festivals
^See: Hybrids (fiction/nonfiction films) at External links
^Definition of documentary – New Frontiers in American documentary (American Studies at The University of Virginia)
^The Impulse of Documentary-Fiction Archived March 19, 2012, at the Wayback Machine – Paper at Transart Institute Archived 2011-08-31 at the Wayback Machine
^(NON)FICTION AND THE VIEWER: RE-INTERPRETING THE DOCUMENTARY FILM Archived 2012-03-25 at the Wayback Machine – Paper by Tammy Stone, Avila University
^See hybrid genre Archived September 11, 2011, at the Wayback Machine – page 50, thesis on docufiction by Prof. Theo Mäusli
^Open-ended Realities – article by Luciana Lang at Latineos
^The appeal of hybrid documentary forms in West Africa at Project Muse
^Ethics and Documentary Filmmaking – Article by Marty Lucas at Center for Social Media (American University in Washington, D.C)
^On Ethics and Documentary: A Real and Actual Truth – Article by Garnet C. Butchart at Cultural Studies Program, Trent University, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, published University of South Florida
^What to Do About Documentary Distortion? Toward a Code of Ethics Archived 2012-03-23 at the Wayback Machine – Article by Bill Nichols at Documentary.org
^Documentary Film Prompts-Ethics in Documentary/Fiction vs. Documentary – Paper by Ardavon Naimi at University of Texas at Dallas
^Ethics and Filmmaking in Developing Countries Archived 2021-05-13 at the Wayback Machine at Unite For Sight
^Jean Rouch 1917-2004, A Valediction – Article by Michael Eaton at Rouge
^Jean Rouch and the Genesis of Ethnofiction, thesis by Brian Quist, Long Island University
^"Ethnofiction: drama as a creative research practice in ethnographic film." Journal of Media Practice 9, no. 3(2008), eScholarID:1b5648, article by Johannes Sjöberg
^See Docudrama: the real (his)tory Confusion of genres – Page 2 on the thesis by Çiçek Coşkun (New York University School of Education)
^A television programme or film which takes the form of a serious documentary in order to satirize its subject. – definition at The Free Dictionary and Dictionary.com
^Why 'Moana,' the First Docufiction in History, Deserves a New Life – article by Laya Maheshwari at Indiewire, July 3, 2014
^Note, however, that Flaherty's earlier film, Nanook of the North from 1922, incorporates many docufiction elements, including the "casting" of locals into fictitious "roles" and family relationships, as well as anachronistic hunting scenes
^Crowther, Bosley (1948-09-29). "' Luisiana Story,' a Flaherty Film About a Boy in the Bayou Country, at the Sutton". NY Times.
^Out of the Bowery’s Shadows (Then Back In) – article by Dave Kehr, February 24, 2012
^One drink over the line – article by J.R. Jones Archived 2018-04-27 at the Wayback Machine at the Chicago Reader, February 16, 2012
^"Cruel Camera, FAKERY in Wildlife Documentaries". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. CBC news, the fifth estate. 2008-11-26. event of 1958. Archived from the original on 2009-01-31.
^The Film Is the Search: J. Hoberman on Jean Rouch's Moi, Un Noir Archived 2018-04-28 at the Wayback Machine – article by J. Hoberman, Artforum International, November 2015
^India: Matri Bhumi Archived September 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine – Article by Doug Cummings at Filmjourney Archived 2015-10-29 at the Wayback Machine (March 18th, 2007)
^Digitally cleaned 'India, Matri Bhumi' screened at Vienna film festival – Article at IBN Live
^Christopher, Rob (2007-08-29). "Q: What Do You Call a Movie That's Getting Its Chicago Premiere 48 Years After Being Made?". Chicagoist. Archived from the original on 2013-06-28. Retrieved 2012-08-29.
^McClune, Caitlin (2014). "Come Back, Africa: The Films of Lionel Rogosin, Volume II (Review)". The Moving Image. 14 (2): 118–120.
^Despite success of Les Ordres, filmmaker Michel Brault preferred fact to fiction – article by Robert Everett-Green at The Globe and Mail, April 14, 2017
^Lives more interesting than movies – article by Don Shewey, Soho News, June 18, 1980
^Closed Curtain review – Iranian auteur confronts depression and creativity – review by Mark Kermode, The Guardian, September 6, 2015
^‘Closed Curtain’ Directed8 by Jafar Panahi And Kambuzia Partovi – review by Christopher Bell at IndieWire, July 10, 2014
^Romney, Jonathan (November 1, 2015). "Taxi Tehran review – Jafar Panahi's joy ride". The Observer.
^Jafar Panahi’s Remarkable “Taxi” – review by Richard Brody, New Yorker, October 13, 2015
^"Tuktuq – Film de Robin Aubert". Films du Québec, March 2, 2017
^"«Mad Dog Labine»: irrésistiblement «rough»". Le Devoir, April 6, 2019
Sources and bibliographyedit
THESES online
(in English) Docufiction in the Digital Age – thesis by Tay Huizhen, National University of Singapore
(in English) The Zulu Mask: The Role of Creative Imagination in Documentary Film – thesis by Clifford Derrick, Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg
(in English) Docudrama: the real (his)tory thesis by Çiçek Coşkun (New York University School of Education)
(in English) Issues in contemporary documentary by Jane Chapman at Google Books (pages 1 to 34)
ARTICLES and ESSAYS
(in English) Shaping the Real: Directorial imagination and the visualisation of evidence in the hybrid documentary – article by Janet Merewether at Scan, Media Department at Macquarie University, Sydney
(in English) Docufiction: Where Art and Life Merge and Diverge– Article by Julie Drizin at Makers Quest 2.0
(in English) New Media Documentary Archived 2013-07-21 at the Wayback Machine – Paper by Gunthar Hartwig
(in English) Docudrama: the real (his)tory
(in English) Panel: At The Edge of Truth: Hybrid Documentaries at Vox Talk magazine
(in English) The dual phase oscillation hypothesis and the neuropsychology of docu-fiction film – article by Dyutiman Mukhopadhyay, Consciousness, Literature and the Arts, vol. 16, no. 1, April 2015
(in English) A creative treatment of actuality – paper by Peter Biesterfeld at Videomaker, August 7, 2015
(in English) The art paradox – article by Bert Oliver Archived 2015-12-08 at the Wayback Machine at Thought Leader, September 17, 2012
(in French) Le documentaire historique au péril du « docufiction – thesis by François Garçon [fr] (abstract in English and French)
(in French) 3 questions à…Isabelle Veyrat-Masson – interview (Le Journal du CNRS)
(in French) Peter Watkins, un cinéaste maudit article at Critikat
(in Italian) Un genere cinematografico: la docu-fiction. Il caso di 150 ore a Pavia by Laura Marchesi (thesis – abstract)
CITATIONS
(in English) Paget, Derek (1998). No Other Way to Tell It. Dramadoc/docudrama on television. Manchester University Press. ISBN 978-0-7190-4533-2.
(in English) Rosenthal, Alan (199). Why Docudrama? : Fact-Fiction on Film and TV. Carbondale & Edwardsville: Southern Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-8093-2186-5.
(in English) Lipkin, Steven N., ed. (2002). Real Emotional Logic. Film and Television Docudrama As Persuasive Practice. Carbondale: Southern Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0-8093-2409-5.