Research

 

History of Documentaries

Documentary film has played a vital role in shaping how societies understand reality, history, and one another. The nature of documentary film has expanded in the past 30 years from the cinema style introduced in the 1960s in which the use of portable camera and sound equipment allowed an intimate relationship between filmmaker and subject. 

Documentary film making has continually evolved in response to technological advances, political contexts, and changing ideas about truth and representation. The history of documentaries reflects not only developments in film form but also humanity’s enduring desire to record, interpret, and question the real world.

When it comes to crime documentaries it began in the early 1900s with newspaper crime reporting and television police programs into a major modern media genre. The genre grew with television in the 1850s-1970s as audiences became interested in real investigations and criminal psychology. In today’s world, crime documentaries are popular because they combine real-life drama, mystery and investigative storytelling used carefully to raise ethical questions about victims and sensationalism.

 

This poster is a document based on Jack the Ripper one of the biggest unsolved mysteries in England history. On this cover the main centre of attention is a blonde women staring at the audience with a serious expression. For the background there is a rip going down the middle diagonally. The split down the middle separates the streets of London and the alleyways of London. The streets are plain, black, and white which implies a sense of boredom and loneliness, as opposed to the other side, which shows a red vibe, suggesting blood and danger, enforcing the aggression based around Jack the Ripper as a violent, mysterious character. The bold text of ‘Jack the Ripper’ suggests the importance of his character, and how his name is larger, for being such a significant danger, under the text is explaining how the case was reopened, encasing how serious the case is, with more redness within the poster .

This poster has a mysterious appeal about it, with most of the poster being dark. The implication of this suggests the mysterious aura of the Night Stalker. Most stalkers are around at night, which contrasts well with the name this person has. The red stripe going down the side of his face shows he is always watching in anger and violent intent. It also shows half of his face, but not all of it, enforcing the idea that he doesn’t want to be seen by anyone, and wants to remain mysterious to everyone, to show his “stalker” character off more.

The text is a bold red in a scary font, suggesting how his character, and the plot is violent and aggressive. The light in the background makes it seem as if he has someone else watching him, such as a detective or someone finding out who he is.