Although it’s impossible to characterize postwar American documentary filmmaking in a single way, one recurring theme that emerges is the filmmakers’ grappling with the truth and reality. This struggle occurs in several ways. Some examples we’ve covered:

Of course, this is not an exhaustive list but they should help you brainstorm how documentaries variously represent truth and reality.

In this writing assignment, compare/contrast how two documentary films we’ve studied after the midterm exam represent truth and reality, either similarly or distinctly. Your analysis should concentrate on one scene from each film and analyze the scenes’ use of one or more of the following stylistic techniques:

Your analysis should also consider the context of the overall film and the motivations of the filmmaker in documenting the subject as truth or reality. Because this is a short assignment, you should avoid summarizing the plot of the film so that you may be detailed in your descriptions. Do not summarize the plot.

You don’t need to do any outside research for this assignment, but if you do use any bibilographic souces, you will need to cite those. Please remember to italicize the title of the films—don’t put the title in quotes.

Your paper should be about 1,200 words in length and is due in class on the date specified on the syllabus. Please do not email me your paper. Bring a hard copy to class.