Viewfinder: Documentary Observations
I have always been fascinated with the documentary video genre. A day in the life of a nurse or a policeman makes for excellent video. Even something simple like a wedding day makes wonderful content for a documentary.
As videographers, we need to answer this fundamental question with our work: "What was it really like to be there?" What was it like to be at Ground Zero for the two men who happened to be recording the life of a fireman on September 11th only to get footage of the attack on the World Trade Center? I'd like to know what it was like on the day that my parents got married 51 years ago. What is it like to be in the pits at a car race? Video is a wonderful medium to capture people's real lives.
As with any other genre, the documentary has its extremes in style. On the far end is cinema verte', which strives for "no interpretation," just capturing the truth. To this end, Andy Warhol produced a video entitled Empire, which comprised one seven-hour shot of the Empire State …
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