Oscar Spotlight: The Importance of Documentaries Today

Documentaries are on of the underrated forms of filmmaking that is available. Maybe it is because of the fact that they are so easy to make and anyone has the ability. Or the fact that there are so few that actually get any real media coverage compared to feature films.

Since I took a course about documentary filmmaking I have slowly appreciated them more and more. The storytelling devices, the tension created from scenarios and the ability of these filmmakers to cross space and time to complete their stories is amazing for me to watch. Name your best action thriller that has you captivated from beginning to end and I am sure there is a documentary that will do the same.

Documentaries allow filmmakers to tell real stories about real people. To delve into the issues plaguing our society and to project their ideals into the world. They are important in this way. Creating these stories that would not have been seen in such a detailed way brings issues to the forefront. The Oscars truly spotlight this by including a section for documentary feature length and short film into the Academy Awards.

Check out the full list of nominated films

Oscar Documentary Short Discussion

This is a category that is truly hard to follow as most of these short films are only from 5 to 20 minutes long. They are very simple but tell these complex stories. The short Joe’s Violin was especially interesting for the way that it showcased two completely different lives and the way that they were changed by the violin that has been around since WW2. Stories like these are something you may hear on the radio and the Raphaela Neihausen, one of the filmmakers did and that is how she first got interested in the story. Stories like this and all the other short films nominated are important little slices of life that you get to spend a little bit of time learning about these unique people and their stories.

Oscar Documentary Feature Discussion

This year has been especially good for feature length documentaries of all styles. From all of the picks for the Oscar as well as Weiner, about politician Anthony Weiner and his life to fun docs like Justin Timberlake + the Tennessee Kids and The Beatles: Eight Days a Week is just a small list of my favorite docs from this year. The Oscars have been criticized for their whitewashing in the past but these choices not only show diversity in the filmmakers, the content is perfect for having that same discussion of racism in America. 3 of the films deal directly with different areas of racism in the country and it allows viewers if you watch all of them to get different looks into how widespread racism still is in our modern society. Documentaries are important to learn more about the world around us and all of the picks exemplify this.