The Historical Development of Style in Documentary Films

Documentary style has constantly evolved and redefined itself. Ever since the earliest films were made, filmmakers have invented new technologies and storytelling solutions that have, in turn, suggested additional and more innovative possibilities to younger filmmakers who have seen and learned from the work of their elders.
Early French Shorts

Before 1900, films were extremely short--a minute or less--and really just captured moving images in a single event or scene. Moving pictures were seen as such a novelty, their mere existence was enough to enrapture viewers. The best examples of these black and white documentaries is the fascinating footage of the brothers Auguste and Louis Lumière, shot at their studio in Lyons, France.

Seminal Styles

In 1914, two seminal documentaries indicated the development of divergent styles in longer form: storytelling documentaries. Edward S. Curtis used reenactments to show ’true’ Native American life in In the Land of The Headhunters, while footage actually shot on location revealed the hardships endured by the cast of The Rescue of the Stephansson Arctic Expedition.

Setting the Scene

Reenactment and setting the scene was commonplace in early documentaries. In his famous Nanook of the North (1922), Robert J. Flaherty shot on location, but frequently censored the behavior of his subjects and even had them build an igloo without a roof so he could get sufficient light and space for his camera work.