THE ETHICAL PRACTICE IN DOCUMENTARY FILMS

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The form of documentary films has been a very powerful platform in engaging people with the real and historical world. Documentary films are one of the most noteworthy techniques for which individuals find out about actual stories and real people. The literature of documentary filmmaking offers four different approaches that researchers have used to study this genre. One approach is related to cultural production that determines and shapes the form of documentary film such as subject depictions, stylistic conventions, and public interpretation of a film. A second approach is related to the societal impact of a film in reframing news coverage and policy debate. A third approach is the interaction of a documentary film with civil society and democracy. And the fourth is the ethical issues that make the core of documentaries. This last approach, the ethical understanding of the making of documentaries is the area that this paper will focus upon (ex, Nichols, 1991, 2001; Sanders, 2010; Maccarone, 2010; Nash, 2011; Butchart, 2006). The ethical concerns in documentary practice rest upon two important constituents: 1) subjects who are filmed in documentaries; 2) and the viewers. Nisbet and Aufderheide (2009) claimed that the study of the ethical challenges related to documentary filmmaking is important to promote public life and civic culture. Next, I will examine the scholars’ discussion on the ethical responsibilities surrounding the making of the documentary films.
The review of literature
Nichols (2001) defined documentary filmmaking as an act of representation that has consequences for those represented. Maccarone (2010) distinguished documentary from news report and defined documentaries as a film that attempts to tell a true s...

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...One of the most used ethical practice filmmakers consider is the informed consent. The informed consent is a contract between filmmakers and their participants to authorize filmmakers to use the filmed materials and to claim the truthfulness of the documentaries. Nichols (2001) advocated more explanation when consent is requested—the participants may not be in a position to really know what the consequences may be. Some suggestions have been made to give participants the right to view the materials and film before the final transmission as a way to protect their rights, but Sanders (2010) objected to this because it compromises the filmmaker’s creativity. Sanders (2010) and Maccarone (2010) showed the lack of uniform procedures of informed consent in the documentary filmmaking one issue that highlights the need for a discussion of ethics in documentary filmmaking.

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