Units / ATS3540
ATS3540 · Documentary Screens: Self, revolution and the everyday
2026 Handbook6 credit pointsLevel 3Film, Screen and Culture
Last checked: 23 Aug 2026 UTCOverview
Documentary and Realism in Film and Television examines approaches to documentary film and television through addressing questions of realism, reality, truth, indexicality and the boundary between fiction and non-fiction. The theoretical and practical issues discussed in relation to film and television will provide a framework for the examination of a number of important phases in the historical development of documentary and realist codes. The unit will address different styles of documentary, such as direct cinema, autobiography, reality formats and digital documentary and their historical evolution, in addition to the contemporary landscape of documentary production.
Areas of study: Film and screen studies Screen
Offerings
| Campus | Teaching period | Mode |
|---|---|---|
| Caulfield | First semester | Teaching activities are on-campus (ON-CAMPUS) |
| Clayton | First semester | Teaching activities are on-campus (ON-CAMPUS) |
Assessment
The Handbook does not list a final examination among the assessment items. That is not a guarantee there is none.
| # | Assessment | Type | Weight | Hurdle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Audio-visual Project | Artefact | 20% | — |
| 2 | In-class visual analysis | Quiz / Test | 30% | — |
| 3 | Case Study Presentation | Presentation | 15% | — |
| 4 | Case Study | Written | 35% | — |
Within semester assessment: 100%
Assessment details may change. Please refer to the assessment information in Moodle closer to the start of the teaching period.
Requisites
The Handbook lists no prerequisite, corequisite or prohibition for this unit.
Learning outcomes
- Identify and classify a range historical and contemporary documentary or realist codes in relation to different media such as cinema, television and digital media.
- Evaluate film and television studies methodologies as they pertain to examples of non-fiction.
- Apply film and television studies methodologies in order to compare and analyse different documentary or realist forms
- Apply library resources and communicate an understanding of research methods in written and oral form.
Workload
Minimum total expected workload to achieve the learning outcomes for this unit is 144 hours per semester typically comprising a mixture of scheduled learning activities and independent study. A unit requires on average three/four hours of scheduled activities per week. Scheduled activities may include a combination of teacher directed learning, peer directed learning and online engagement.
| Activity | Duration |
|---|---|
| Lectures | 12 hours |
| Tutorials | 24 hours |
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