April 30, 2007
A Show That Does Capture "Reality"
From documentaries to reality TV, what they have in common is that both genres are perceived to document reality and are made to look real. One can not deny that there may be some form of reality being captured, but there is nothing that can be considered 100% authentic when looking into the genres. It is no secret that when a camera is present that an individual does not act the same. No matter what the situation, there is always a hidden agenda behind an average documentary and reality tv show. So the question is asked: has there ever been a movie or show that captures the truth? The answer is that there has been. Look at the show "Caught on Camera". Hidden cameras that capture footage of people, who are unsuspecting of cameras being present, doing what they would normally do. Though not everything they do is considered pleasant or nice, the footage is real because they are no actor/ress playing up the camera time and the situations are not setup for the purpose of entertainment. That is the quality that both documenteries and reality tv shows both have in common. Now if there was only a way to intergrate the qualities of a show such as Caught on Camera with the documentary film, it could be a way of getting even closer to the reality of a scene.
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2 comments:
I agree that most documentaries, like Micheal Moore, are obviously set up and don't capture reality. But, it is possible to get a lot of truth out of documentaries that simply follow people and let the story develop naturally. Take "Steve" or "The devil's Playground" for instance. Crews come in and let the cameras be on these people for so long before they acually decide to record, that the people become natural subjects. It may not be as natural as if the camera were hidden, but it is very close because the characters eventually come to the point where they can block out the camera and we can witness real actions.
"It is no secret that when a camera is present that an individual does not act the same."
While this is true, I think that a person can reveal certain aspects of their real selfs while in front of a camera that they are aware of. We can look at today's technology as an example with all the cameras on cell phones and digital cameras that can capture the moment.
I'm also thinking of the PBS show from the 70's called An American Family in which the family grew to be comfortable in front of the cameras and began to reveal some of their true thoughts about their family.
It would be interesting to see if a person would forever act a different way in front of the camera.
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