On its own, information is neutral, and meaning involves emotion. Meaning therefore, is the understanding that is generated and the projection of meaning is not an experience, but knowledge.
Visual narratives are meant to document, display and preserve real stories of real people. These stories provide readymade communicative contexts that are lined up in to a concise, clear and conceptual representation of a complex subject matter.
Only through meaningful narratives are we able to convey the experience of objectivity, which makes them more effective in engaging viewers to change rather than just providing “objective” data and explanatory knowledge.
A documentary film is a nonfictional motion picture intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education, or maintaining a historical record. “Documentary” has been described as a “filmmaking practice, a cinematic tradition, and mode of audience reception” that is continually evolving and is without clear boundaries. Documentary films were originally called ‘actuality’ films and were only a minute or less in length. Over time documentaries have evolved to be longer in length and to include more categories, such as educational, observational, and even ‘docufiction’. Documentaries are also educational and often used in schools to teach various principles.
