Conventions of Short Films

Codes and Conventions

Sound:

Usually, sounding documentaries contain both diegetic and non-diegetic. Both these are used for the audience to engage with the film that they are viewing. Every documentary must include sound or else it wouldn't interact with the audience the way it is meant to. Diegetic and non-diegetic sounds are conventional as it will allow documentaries bring out emotion. Diegetic sound is sound that can be heard by both audience and context. For example, sound from an interview would be considered diegetic. Non Diegetic sound on the other hand is used when a soundtrack is played, although the type of soundtrack played always deeds on the theme of the short film. For example, if the documentary were to be about a sportsman and his glory, then the music would be upbeat and motivational, whereas if the genre was based on crime and death etc, then  the music will be slow and more thrilling. This is important because it always affects the audience making them feel  a specific way toward the film. Making it that if there were no non-diegetic sound whatsoever it wouldnt be worth watching at all.

Real Footage: 

This is used in documentaries to make it seem as real as possible without the use of reconstruction shots to make the audience believe what they watch. The realer the footage, the more the audience will feel as if they are living the life of the people involved in the documentary and allow them to understand it more than they would if the footage was non-fictional. Also the audience would be viewing truthful documentaries rather than untruthful ones.

Reconstructions:

In documentaries these are artificial scenes that have been re-filmed to make it as close to what had happened in real life. This is usually done because it gives knowledge to the audience if there were no site of real evidence in order for them to have an idea of what had happened. However, most documentaries use techniques such as blurring or even distorting the shots to indicate that its not the real deal.

Voice Over:

These are one of the most common aspects of documentaries. A voice over is a type of non-diegetic sound, the reason for this is because it is often from a narration that aims directly nat the audience to understand what is happening and what sort of information is being given out throughout the short film.