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Young people and religion: creative learning with history
Young people and religion: creative learning with history

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1 Types of documentary film

The pedagogical purpose of docutubes is not to help young people become the next Steven Spielberg (although if one does, perhaps that is a welcome bonus!) – rather, the point is the learning and creative process. The aim of docutube-making is to help participants develop their ideas about religious diversity and toleration by going through a process of thinking, planning and creating in order to communicate a message to others. Docutubes, in pedagogical terms, are a means of ‘active learning’ or ‘creative analytic practice’ (Parry and Johnson, 2007; Gauntlett, 2011). As an educator, you will need to help the young people keep in mind that a docutube project is not a course in filmmaking. Perfection is not required!

Having said this, to develop and express their ideas, and to enjoy the experience, young people will benefit from having some of the basic tools to turn their ideas into a visual message. This is the goal of the planning phase.

For a moment, you will put to one side the theme of religious toleration and think about different documentary genres. Nichols (2001) suggests there are six types of documentary film. The three mentioned below are particularly relevant to docutubes:

  • Expository: essentially a voiceover (‘voice of God’) approach, whereby one or more participants narrate a discussion of a range of images (objects, places etc.).

  • Participatory: here, the filmmakers’ interactions with the subjects and material become the focus of the documentary.

  • Performative: one in which the filmmaker(s) is actively involved in the action, perhaps even becoming the subject.

Activity 1

Timing: Allow about 10 minutes for this activity

Think about the three documentary ‘types’ and try to think of an example of each from documentaries you have seen. Write your example in the text box below. If you can’t think of an example for some, just do the ones you can.

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Discussion

As an example:

  • Expository: Planet Earth (2006). This is ‘driven’ by a single narration, by David Attenborough, describing (‘expositing’) the footage of nature.
  • Participatory: Louis Theroux: The City Addicted to Crystal Meth (2009). In fact, any of Louis Theroux’s work falls into this category: he is always on screen, interacting with his subjects.
  • Performative: Super Size Me (2004). This documentary is ‘performative’ because the director is himself the subject, eating only McDonald’s food for 30 days.