Information Package / Course Catalogue
Documentary Film
Course Code: RTS302
Course Type: Area Elective
Couse Group: First Cycle (Bachelor's Degree)
Education Language: Turkish
Work Placement: N/A
Theory: 3
Prt.: 0
Credit: 3
Lab: 0
ECTS: 5
Objectives of the Course

This course explains in general the point reached in the field of documentary cinema from the discovery of cinema. The aim of the course is to teach history and documentary approach of the documentary as a genre. To ensure that each student design their own documentary project

Course Content

The course includes the history of documentary cinema, main approaches to documentary film, major documentary types, historical and political documents, propaganda documents, mockumentary, dokudrama and documentary cinema in Turkey.

Name of Lecturer(s)
Learning Outcomes
1.Identifies the historical development and theoretical foundations of documentary cinema.
2.Analyzes modes of representation and formal approaches in documentary cinema through scene examples.
3.Evaluates debates on reality, representation, and ethics within the framework of documentary film theories.
4.Interprets the relationships between theoretical approaches and the genres/forms of documentary cinema.
5.Critically compares and analyzes various documentary examples within a theoretical framework.
Recommended or Required Reading
1.Rotha, Paul (1995) Belgesel Sinema. İstanbul, Sistem.
2.Rotha, Paul (2000) Belgesel Sinema. İzdüşümü Yay.
3.Balkaya, Fusun (1993) Türkiye’de Belgesel Film Çalışmaları.
4.Adalı, Bilgin (1986) Belgesel Sinema: Belgesel Sinemanın Doğuşu, İngiliz Belgesel Okulu, Türk Belgesel Sineması.
5.Susam, Asuman (2015) Toplumsal Bellek ve Belgesel Sinema
6.Teksoy, Rekin (2007) Rekin Teksoy’un Türk Sineması
7.İpek Özgür (2014) Tanıklıklar Sineması
8.James Monako 2014 Bir Film Nasıl Okunur
9.Aitken, Ian (1998) The documentary film movement: an anthology Edinburgh University Press: Edinburgh
10.Avcı, Berrin (1999). Belgesel Sinemacı Yönüyle Sabahattin Eyüboğlu, Eskişehir: Anadolu Üniversitesi.
11.Belgesel Sinema (2007). İstanbul: Belgesel Sinemacılar Birliği.
12.Belgesel Sinema (2008). İstanbul: Belgesel Sinemacılar Birliği.
13.Benjamin, Walter (2001). "Tekniğin Olanaklarıyla Yeniden Üretilebildiği Çağda Sanat Yapıtı." Pasajlar. İstanbul: YKY.
14.Nichols, Bill (2001). Introduction to Documentary, Bloomington & Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.
15.Ulutak, Nazmi (2003). Robert J. Flaherty ve Kuzeyli Nanook, Eskişehir: Anadolu Üniversitesi.
16.Renov, Michael (1993) Theorizing documentary. Routledge: New York
17.Turan Akkoyun (2018) Serüven Adamı: Türk Sinemasında Çeşitlemeler, Kümbet Yay. Ankara.
18.Turan Akkoyun (2021) "Umudun Toprağı Belgeseli: Erzurum Kongresi", Atatürk Dergisi, 10(1), ss. 1-20.
Weekly Detailed Course Contents
Week 1 - Theoretical
Introduction to Documentary Cinema: Definition, scope, and theoretical approaches
Week 2 - Theoretical
Historical Development of Documentary Cinema I: From the silent era to World War II
Week 3 - Theoretical
Historical Development of Documentary Cinema II: Post-war period and the influence of New Wave
Week 4 - Theoretical
Soviet Montage School and Dziga Vertov: Theoretical approach and influences - (Movie: Man with the Movie Camera (1929) Dziga Vertov)
Week 5 - Theoretical
British Documentary School: John Grierson and socially purposeful documentary
Week 6 - Theoretical
Direct Cinema and Cinéma Vérité: Observational Documentary Movements of the 1960s (Movie: Chronicle of a Summer (1960) Jean Rouch & Edgar Morin – Movie: Titicut Follies (1967) Frederick Wiseman & John Marshall)
Week 7 - Theoretical
Bill Nichols’ Modes: Expository, Observational, Participatory, Performative, Reflexive, Poetic
Week 8 - Theoretical
Reality and Representation in Documentary: Theories and debates - Midterm Exam
Week 9 - Theoretical
Ethics and Ideology: Ethical issues, propaganda, and ideological frameworks (Movie: Triumph des Willens (1935) Leni Riefenstahl)
Week 10 - Theoretical
Documentary Genres I: Nature, history, science, social documentaries
Week 11 - Theoretical
Documentary Genres II: Experimental, autobiographical, mockumentary
Week 12 - Theoretical
Documentary Genres III:The Dramatization of Real Events – Boundaries between documentary and fiction, dramatic reenactments, and the visualization of historical events. (Movie: United 93 (2006), The Crown)
Week 13 - Theoretical
Documentary Genres IV: Jean Rouch and Cinematic Ethnography – (Movie: Chronique d’un été)
Week 14 - Theoretical
New Media and Interactive Documentary: Webdocs, VR, AR documentaries - Documentary and Audience: Perception, witnessing, and emotional engagement
Assessment Methods and Criteria
Type of AssessmentCountPercent
Attending Lectures5%5
Quiz1%10
Midterm Examination1%25
Final Examination1%60
Workload Calculation
ActivitiesCountPreparationTimeTotal Work Load (hours)
Lecture - Theory140342
Assignment130131
Quiz1000
Midterm Examination120121
Final Examination130131
TOTAL WORKLOAD (hours)125
Contribution of Learning Outcomes to Programme Outcomes
PÇ-1
PÇ-2
PÇ-3
PÇ-4
PÇ-5
PÇ-6
PÇ-7
PÇ-8
PÇ-9
PÇ-10
PÇ-11
PÇ-12
PÇ-13
PÇ-14
PÇ-15
PÇ-16
OÇ-1
5
5
3
3
3
OÇ-2
5
5
5
2
4
4
2
OÇ-3
5
5
3
4
2
5
2
OÇ-4
5
5
4
4
2
2
OÇ-5
5
3
5
5
2
3
Adnan Menderes University - Information Package / Course Catalogue
2026