6 Types of Videos Produced by a Documentary Video Production Crew 

Documentary videos provide a history of outline of a particular process or point in time that others have an interest in. Around since the beginning of film cinema, documentary videos represent history and opportunity. Award winning documentary films continue to be produced to this day. In fact, ask any documentary video production crew and you’ll surely hear them speak of one of these 6 types of documentary videos being the top of their list of favorites to create. 

1. The Expository Documentary 

Used to persuade and inform the audience, expository documentaries are very popular today. Businesses use expository documentaries to deliver narrated content that helps the consumer understand why they should choose one brand over another or what makes one brand better than another. Popular expository documentaries of the past include: 

• The Dust Bowl 
• The Blue Planet 
• Nanook of the North 

2. The Observational Documentary 

Observational documentaries provide a cinematic view of the world. These films provide a realistic representation of everyday life. The viewer gets a sort of “fly on the wall” outlook on what happened in history, as if they are observing the actions taking place first hand. The observational documentaries of the past that are most noteworthy include: 

• Knuckle 
• Rough Aunties 
• War Photographer 

3. The Poetic Documentary 

Dating back to the 1920s, poetic documentaries focus on sharing experiences, images, and historic events of the world through a different viewport. Must like poetry, these documentaries use abstract, loose narrative, and poetic sub-genre to connect with the viewer’s feelings rather than their truths. Past poetic documentaries of note include: 

• Life in a Day 
• World Mirror Cinema 
• Welt Spiegel Kino 

4. The Participatory Documentary 

The participatory documentary is produced by a documentary video production crew that actively engages with the situation that is being documented. The film crew “participates” in the documentation. This type of documentary can provide a point of view insight from the filmmaker into the situation that is documented. Past participatory documentaries of note include: 

• King Corn 
• Chronicle of a Summer 
• The Danube Exodus 

5. The Reflexive Documentary 

Representing a similar style to that used in the participatory documentary, reflexive documentaries include the filmmaker in the film but the filmmaker really doesn’t explore an outside subject. Instead, the reflexive documentary will focus on the filmmaker himself and the process of producing the documentary film. Reflexive documentaries of note front he past include: 

• …No Lies 
• Biggie & Tupac 
• Man with a Movie Camera 

6. The Performative Documentary 

Representing experimental works with style and experience of the subject, the performative documentary shares an emotional response with the world through personal accounts with major issues, often political or historical in scope. Performative documentaries are commonly referenced as the “Michael Moore” style of documentary production because Michael Moore often used personal stories to build arguments around social truths in the past. Notable documentaries produced by the performative documentary video production crew include: 

• Fahrenheit 9/11 
• Supersize Me 
• Bowling for Columbine