Docufiction (or docu-fiction) is the cinematographic combination of

documentary A documentary film (often described simply as a documentary) is a nonfiction Film, motion picture intended to "document reality, primarily for instruction, education or maintaining a Recorded history, historical record". The American author and ...

and

fiction Fiction is any creative work, chiefly any narrative work, portraying character (arts), individuals, events, or setting (narrative), places that are imagination, imaginary or in ways that are imaginary. Fictional portrayals are thus inconsistent ...

, this term often meaning

narrative film Narrative film, fictional film or fiction film is a motion picture that tells a fictional or fictionalized story, event or narrative. Commercial narrative films with running times of over an hour are often referred to as feature films, or featur ...

. It is a

film genre A film genre is a Genre, stylistic or thematic category for Film, motion pictures based on similarities either in the narrative , narrative elements, aesthetic approach, or the emotional response to the film. Drawing heavily from the theories ...

which attempts to capture reality such as it is (as direct cinema or

cinéma vérité Cinéma vérité (, , ) is a style of documentary filmmaking developed by Edgar Morin and Jean Rouch, inspired by Dziga Vertov's theory about '' Kino-Pravda''. It combines improvisation with use of the camera to unveil truth or highlight subje ...

) and which simultaneously introduces unreal elements or fictional situations in

narrative A narrative, story, or tale is any account of a series of related events or experiences, whether non-fictional (memoir, biography, news report, documentary, travel literature, travelogue, etc.) or fictional (fairy tale, fable, legend, thriller ...

in order to strengthen the representation of reality using some kind of artistic expression. More precisely, it is a documentary mixed with fictional elements, in real time, filmed when the events take place, and in which the main character or characters—often portrayed by non-professional or amateur actors—are essentially playing themselves, or slightly fictionalized versions of themselves, in a fictionalized scenario. In this sense, docufiction may overlap to an extent with some aspects of the

mockumentary A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...

format, but the terms are not synonymous. A film genre in expansion, it is adopted by a number of

experimental An experiment is a procedure carried out to support or refute a hypothesis, or determine the efficacy or likelihood of something previously untried. Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs whe ...

filmmakers. The

neologism In linguistics, a neologism (; also known as a coinage) is any newly formed word, term, or phrase that has achieved popular or institutional recognition and is becoming accepted into mainstream language. Most definitively, a word can be considered ...

docufiction appeared at the beginning of the 21st century. It is now commonly used in several languages and widely accepted for classification by international film festivals.

Origins

The term involves a way of making films already practiced by such authors as Robert J. Flaherty, one of the fathers of documentary, and

Jean Rouch Jean Rouch (; 31 May 1917 – 18 February 2004) was a French Filmmaking, filmmaker and anthropologist. He is considered one of the founders of cinéma vérité in France. Rouch's practice as a filmmaker, for over 60 years in Africa, was char ...

, later in the 20th century. Being both

and

, docufiction is a hybrid genre, raising

ethical Ethics is the philosophical study of moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches include normative ethics, applied e ...

problemsOpen-ended Realities
– article by Luciana Lang a
Latineos
/ref> concerning

truth Truth or verity is the Property (philosophy), property of being in accord with fact or reality.Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionarytruth, 2005 In everyday language, it is typically ascribed to things that aim to represent reality or otherwise cor ...

, since reality may be manipulated and confused with fiction (see

Ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

at creative non-fiction). In the domain of

visual anthropology Visual anthropology is a subfield of social anthropology that is concerned, in part, with the study and production of ethnography, ethnographic photography, film and, since the mid-1990s, new media. More recently it has been used by historians ...

, the innovating role of Jean Rouch allows one to consider him as the father of a subgenre called

ethnofiction Ethnofiction is a subfield of ethnography which produces works that introduce art, in the form of storytelling, "thick descriptions and conversational narratives", and even first-person autobiographical accounts, into academic works. In addition ...

. This term means:

ethnographic Ethnography is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. It explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject of the study. Ethnography is also a type of social research that involves examining ...

documentary film with natives who play fictional roles. Making them play a role about themselves will help portray reality, which will be reinforced with

imagery Imagery is visual symbolism, or figurative language that evokes a mental image or other kinds of sense impressions, especially in a literary work, but also in other activities such as. Imagery in literature can also be instrumental in conveying ...

. A non-ethnographic

with fictional elements uses the same method and, for the same reasons, may be called docufiction.

Docudrama and mockumentary

In contrast,

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television show, television and feature film, film, which features Drama (film and television), dramatized Historical reenactment, re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of docu ...

is usually a dramatized recreation of factual events in form of a documentary, at a time subsequent to the "real" events it portrays. While ''docudrama'' can be confused with ''docufiction,'' "docudrama" refers specifically to film or other television recreations that dramatize certain events, often with actors. A

is also a film or television show in which fictitious events are presented in documentary format, sometimes a recreation of factual events after they took place or a comment on current events, typically satirical, comedic or even dramatic. Whereas mockumentaries are usually fully scripted comedies or dramas that merely adopt some aspects of documentary format as a framing device, docufictions are usually not scripted, instead placing the participants in a fictionalized scenario while portraying their own genuine reactions and their own

improvisation Improvisation, often shortened to improv, is the activity of making or doing something not planned beforehand, using whatever can be found. The origin of the word itself is in the Latin "improvisus", which literally means un-foreseen. Improvis ...

al dialogue and character development.

First docufictions by country

* 1926:

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

– '' Moana'' by Robert J. Flaherty * 1930:

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

– '' Maria do Mar'' by José Leitão de Barros * 1930:

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

- '' People on Sunday'' by

Robert Siodmak Robert Siodmak (; 8 August 1900 – 10 March 1973) was a German Jewish film director. His career spanned some 40 years, working extensively in the United States and France, as well as in his native country. Though he worked in many genres, he was ...

and Edgar G. Ulmer * 1932:

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

– '' L'or des mers'' by Jean Epstein * 1948:

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

– '' La Terra Trema'' by

Luchino Visconti Luchino Visconti di Modrone, Count of Lonate Pozzolo (; 2 November 1906 – 17 March 1976) was an Italian filmmaker, theatre and opera director, and screenwriter. He was one of the fathers of Italian neorealism, cinematic neorealism, but later ...

* 1952:

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

– '' Children of Hiroshima'' by Kaneto Shindo * 1963:

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

– '' Pour la suite du monde'' (''Of Whales, the Moon and Men'') by Pierre Perrault and Michel Brault * 1981:

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

– '' Trances'' by Ahmed El Maânouni * 1988:

Guiné-Bissau Guinea-Bissau, officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau, is a country in West Africa that covers with an estimated population of 2,026,778. It borders Senegal to its north and Guinea to its southeast. Guinea-Bissau was once part of the kin ...

– '' Mortu Nega'' (Death denied) by Flora Gomes * 1990:

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

– ''

Close-up A close-up or closeup in filmmaking, television production A television show, TV program (), or simply a TV show, is the general reference to any content produced for viewing on a television set that is broadcast via over-the-air, s ...

'' by

Abbas Kiarostami Abbas Kiarostami ( ; 22 June 1940 – 4 July 2016) was an Iranian film director, screenwriter, poet, photographer, and film producer. An active filmmaker from 1970, Kiarostami had been involved in the production of over forty films, including s ...

* 1991:

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

– '' Zombie and the Ghost Train'' by

Mika Kaurismäki Mika Juhani Kaurismäki (; born 21 September 1955) is a Finnish film director. Early life and education Mika Kaurismäki was born in Orimattila. He is the elder brother of Aki Kaurismäki. After high school, Kaurismäki worked as a painter of ...

* 2002:

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

– '' City of God'' by

Fernando Meirelles Fernando Ferreira Meirelles (; born 9 November 1955) is a Brazilian film director, producer, and screenwriter. He is best known for co-directing the film ''City of God (2002 film), City of God'', released in 2002 in Brazil and in 2003 in the Un ...

and Kátia Lund * 2005:

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

– '' Underexposure'' by Oday Rasheed

Other notable examples

* 1927: '' Chang: A Drama of the Wilderness'' by

Merian C. Cooper Merian Caldwell Cooper (October 24, 1893 – April 21, 1973) was an American filmmaker, actor, producer and air officer. In film, his most famous work was the 1933 movie ''King Kong (1933 film), King Kong'', and he is credited as co-inventor of ...

and Ernest B. Schoedsack (US) * 1931: '' Tabu'' by Robert Flaherty and F.W. Murnau (US) * 1934: ''

Man of Aran ''Man of Aran'' is a 1934 Irish fictional documentary ( ethnofiction) film shot, written and directed by Robert J. Flaherty about life on the Aran Islands off the western coast of Ireland. It portrays characters living in premodern condition ...

'' by Robert Flaherty (US) * 1942: '' Ala-Arriba!'' by Leitão de Barros (Portugal) * 1948: '' Louisiana Story'' by Robert Flaherty (US) * 1956: '' On the Bowery'' by Lionel Rogosin (US) * 1958: '' Walt Disney's White Wilderness by

James Algar James Algar (June 11, 1912 – February 26, 1998) was an American film director, screenwriter, and producer. He worked at The Walt Disney Company, Walt Disney Productions for 43 years and received the Disney Legends award in 1998. He was bor ...

(US) * 1958: '' Moi, un noir'' (Me, A Black Man) by

(France) * 1959 '' India Matri Bhumi'' (The Motherland) by

Roberto Rossellini Roberto Gastone Zeffiro Rossellini (8 May 1906 – 3 June 1977) was an Italian film director, screenwriter and producer. He was one of the most prominent directors of the Italian neorealist cinema, contributing to the movement with films such a ...

, released 2007 (Italy) * 1959: '' Come Back, Africa'' by Lionel Rogosin (US) * 1961: '' La pyramide humaine'' by Jean Rouch (The Human Pyramid) (France) * 1962: '' Rite of Spring'' by

Manoel de Oliveira Manoel Cândido Pinto de Oliveira (; 11 December 1908 – 2 April 2015) was a Portuguese film director and screenwriter born in Cedofeita, Porto. He first began making films in 1927, when he and some friends attempted to make a film about Wor ...

(Portugal) * 1964: '' Belarmino'' by Fernando Lopes (Portugal) * 1967: ''

David Holzman's Diary ''David Holzman's Diary'' is a 1967 American mockumentary, or work of metacinema, directed by Jim McBride, James McBride and starring L. M. Kit Carson. A feature-length film made on a tiny budget over several days, it is a work of experimental fic ...

'' by Jim McBride (US) * 1970: '' The Clowns'' by

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter. He is known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and ...

(Italy) * 1973: '' Trevico-Torino (viaggio nel Fiat-Nam)'' by

Ettore Scola Ettore Scola (; 10 May 1931 – 19 January 2016) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. He received a Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film in 1978 for his film ''A Special Day'' and over ...

(Italy) * 1974: ''

Orders Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * H ...

(Les Ordres)'', by Michel Brault (Canada) * 1974: '' Montreal Main'', by Frank Vitale (Canada) * 1976: '' Trás-os-Montes'' (Portugal) * 1982: '' Ana'' by António Reis and Margarida Cordeiro (Portugal) * 1982: '' After the Axe'', by Sturla Gunnarsson (Canada) * 1984: '' The Masculine Mystique'' by Giles Walker and John N. Smith (Canada) * 1985: '' 90 Days'' by Giles Walker (Canada) * 1986: '' Sitting in Limbo'' by John N. Smith (Canada) * 1987: '' The Last Straw'' by Giles Walker (Canada) * 1987: '' Train of Dreams'' by John N. Smith (Canada) * 1989: '' Welcome to Canada'' by John N. Smith (Canada) * 1990: '' The Company of Strangers'' by Cynthia Scott (Canada) * 1991: '' And Life Goes On'' by

(Iran) * 2000: '' In Vanda's Room'' by Pedro Costa (Portugal) * 2001: Tutto in un Giorno by Giorgio J. Squarcia (Italy).” * 2002: '' Ten'' by

(Iran) * 2006: '' Colossal Youth'' by Pedro Costa (Portugal) * 2007: '' Criminals Gone Wild'' by Ousala Aleem (US) * 2008: '' Our Beloved Month of August'' by Miguel Gomes (Portugal) * 2009: '' Carcasses'' by

Denis Côté Denis Côté (born November 16, 1973) is a Canada, Canadian independent filmmaker and producer living in Quebec, of Brayon origin. His experimental films have been shown at major film festivals around the world. Life and career Côté was born i ...

(Canada)"A meditation on what it means to be marginal". ''

Montreal Gazette ''The Gazette'', also known as the ''Montreal Gazette'', is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper which is owned by Postmedia Network. It is published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It is the only English-language daily newspape ...

'', May 29, 2009. * 2009: '' The Mouth of the Wolf'' by

Pietro Marcello Pietro Marcello (born 2 July 1976) is an Italian film director. He has directed more than ten documentary and feature films since 2004. Several of his films have been presented at international film festivals and have received various awards and n ...

(Italy) * 2013: '' Closed Curtain'' by

Jafar Panahi Jafar Panâhi (, ) (born 11 July 1960) is an Iranian film director, screenwriter, and editor. He is known internationally for his contributions to Iranian cinema and has received numerous awards at major film festivals, including the Palme d'Or ...

and Kambuzia Partovi (Iran) * 2015: ''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

'' by

(Iran) * 2016: '' Tuktuq'' by Robin Aubert (Canada) * 2018: '' Mad Dog Labine'' by Jonathan Beaulieu-Cyr and Renaud Lessard (Canada)"«Mad Dog Labine»: irrésistiblement «rough»"
''

Le Devoir (, ) is a French-language newspaper published in Montreal and distributed in Quebec and throughout Canada. It was founded by journalist and politician Henri Bourassa in 1910. is one of few independent large-circulation newspapers in Quebec ...

'', April 6, 2019 * 2019: ''

Rolling Thunder Revue The Rolling Thunder Revue was a 1975–76 concert tour by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan with numerous musicians and collaborators. The purpose of the tour was to allow Dylan, who was a major recording artist and concert performer, to play ...

'' by

Martin Scorsese Martin Charles Scorsese ( , ; born November17, 1942) is an American filmmaker. One of the major figures of the New Hollywood era, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Martin Scorsese, many accolades, including an Academ ...

(US) * 2023: '' Blue Hour'' by Daniel Bowhers (US)

References

Sources and bibliography

THESES online *
Docufiction in the Digital Age
– thesis by Tay Huizhen, National University of Singapore *
The Zulu Mask: The Role of Creative Imagination in Documentary Film
– thesis by Clifford Derrick, Faculty of Arts, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg *
Docudrama: the real (his)tory
thesis by Çiçek Coşkun (New York University School of Education) *
Issues in contemporary documentary
by Jane Chapman at Google Books (pages 1 to 34) ARTICLES and ESSAYS *
Shaping the Real: Directorial imagination and the visualisation of evidence in the hybrid documentary
– article b

a

Media Department at

Macquarie University Macquarie University ( ) is a Public university, public research university in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1964 by the New South Wales Government, it was the third university to be established in the Sydney metropolitan area. ...

, Sydney *
Docufiction: Where Art and Life Merge and Diverge
�� Article by Julie Drizin a
Makers Quest 2.0
*
New Media Documentary
– Paper by Gunthar Hartwig *
Docudrama: the real (his)tory
*
Panel: At The Edge of Truth: Hybrid Documentaries
a
Vox Talk
magazine *
The dual phase oscillation hypothesis and the neuropsychology of docu-fiction film
– article b
Dyutiman Mukhopadhyay
Consciousness, Literature and the Arts, vol. 16, no. 1, April 2015 *
A creative treatment of actuality
– paper b
Peter Biesterfeld
a
Videomaker
August 7, 2015 *
The art paradox
– article b
Bert Oliver
a
Thought Leader
September 17, 2012 ---- *

– thesis by (abstract in English and French) *

– interview (Le Journal du CNRS) *
Peter Watkins, un cinéaste maudit
article at Critikat ---- *
Un genere cinematografico: la docu-fiction. Il caso di 150 ore a Pavia
by Laura Marchesi (thesis – abstract) CITATIONS * * *

External links

* {{Film genres Neologisms Film genres Cinematic techniques Drama genres Documentary film genres Fiction by genre Fiction forms Television genres

Origins

Docudrama and mockumentary

First docufictions by country

Other notable examples

See also

References

Sources and bibliography

External links