For decades, movies have impacted audiences through their diverse delivery of critical messages. Ranging from thrillers to musicals, the versatility of the film industry sparks interest in its viewers and harkens awareness to often overlooked issues. Specifically, documentaries highlight subjects that do not always receive the commercial spotlight. From inside views into the lives of celebrities to firsthand perspectives into geopolitical conflicts, documentaries are most marketable in the United States, but only with 60 percent relative popularity, according to americanfilmmarket.com. Documentaries can evince change as they uncover injustices and inspire viewers to act. Yet, the caveat with documentaries is that the lens is often filtered through the perspective of filmmakers. Audiences need to remember that this art form can raise awareness about crucial issues but should not be a viewer’s only source of information on a topic.
Documentary films can have a powerful and positive impact by shedding light on injustice. Recently, HBO Max released Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV, a mini docu-series that reveals the truth behind viewers’ favorite childhood TV shows, according to imdb.com. Several actors came forward to reveal how they were truly treated behind the scenes. Upon viewing this series, many people who were fans of these shows growing up were shocked at the reality of the circumstances in which child actors were forced to work. While viewers were laughing and enjoying these shows from the comfort of their homes, the actors were exposed to abusive work environments not fit for a child. If it were not for this documentary, audiences would be unaware of the importance of these issues behind seemingly perfect childhood TV shows.
Documentaries’ impact extends beyond new perspectives to hidden truths. Director Ms. Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s 2010 film Blackfish delves into the treatment of orca whales at SeaWorld, specifically focusing on a whale named Tilikum. The documentary uncovered animal welfare issues and the danger that trainers experienced at SeaWorld, and support for the theme park plummeted. After the first year of the film’s release, SeaWorld’s stock market price fell by 33 percent, according to worldanimalprotection.org. The impact of Ms. Cowperthewaite’s documentary was immense as it spread awareness of the treatment and health of animals in theme parks. In fact, it encouraged SeaWorld to end its orca breeding program and later banned the breeding of orcas in the state of California in 2016, according to worldanimalprotection.org.uk. Films such as Quiet on Set: The Dark Side of Kids TV and Blackfish expose how documentaries can promote awareness and positive change.
This year, all nominations for the documentary category for the annual Academy Awards were international films, all of which centered around geopolitical issues. The Oscars first recognized documentaries as an awarded film category in 1942, according to The New York Times. Airing in Los Angeles, California, the Oscars ceremony highlights globally impactful films to shed light on the importance of stories that most viewers do not personally experience. This year, in 2024, director Mr. Mstyslav Chernov’s 20 Days in Mariupol won the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature Film, according to oscars.org. The film highlights the struggle of journalists attempting to document the reality of the Russian-Ukrainian War, according to imdb.com. In his acceptance speech, Mr. Chernov expressed the depth of the story behind his film.
“Probably I will be the first director on this stage who will say ‘I wish I’d never made this film,’” Mr. Chernov said, according to The New York Times. “I wish to be able to exchange this to Russia, never attacking Ukraine.”
On the opposite side of the spectrum from beneficial or expository films like Mr. Chernov’s, some celebrity biographical documentaries contain curated depictions with the goal of encouraging fans to increasingly idolize them in modern-day culture. While viewers are naturally drawn to documentaries of their favorite athletes, politicians, or artists, their portrayals may be misleading. Ultimately, publicists and managers meticulously present celebrities to audiences to protect their images; thus, it is difficult to determine whether or not they are truly revealing or concealing themselves, according to The New York Times. Nonetheless, although some biographical documentaries of celebrities deliver false narratives, the genre still provides a new understanding of previously misconceived topics.
Furthermore, while documentaries at times provide powerful insight into controversial issues, their perspectives are often one-sided. Production companies do not always honor the wishes of documentary subjects, such as omitting information and interviews, in order to attract more viewers, according to amdoc.org. While documentaries are works of nonfiction, they are still filtered to accommodate the satisfaction of multiple editors and producers, thus straying away from the initial intentions of the film. Due to this, audiences may misguidedly base their whole perception of the reality of a topic on one film, causing the truth of important global topics to become distorted, according to electrastreet.net. Regardless, the Oscars’ cinematic spotlight on global issues allowed audiences to gain awareness and critical perspective on seemingly faraway topics.
By incorporating elements of narrative films, documentary filmmakers capture the attention of their audiences in new and innovative ways. Mr. David Pisani, Media Studies Teacher and Technical Support Specialist, noted that the film March of the Penguins shaped his perspective on documentaries as a genre.
“Traditionally, documentaries were made in a way that was not as interesting as they are now,” Mr. Pisani said. “Today, the level of production and the quality of documentaries is very high, and they are very compelling. I remember watching documentaries as a child and being very bored by them. The tone was instructional, almost like a school lesson. A documentary that was a pivotal moment for me was March of the Penguins narrated by Mr. Morgan Freeman. They took a penguin couple, and you watch them take care of their eggs, and they did it in such a dramatic narrative way that is so compelling.”
Ultimately, filmmakers present documentaries as an art form that offers insight and uniquely influences audiences. While they may not represent the whole truth of a particular matter, their perspective into vital points of view remains necessary and valuable. By watching documental films on global issues, viewers can inform themselves on the topics at hand in a captivating manner, ultimately using this awareness as a tool to discern their own opinions.
Featured Image by Camila Oliva ’24
