ABSTRACT
Documentary is persistently treated as a representationalmode of filmmaking, although at its core is the notion of film as record. In its examination of documentary’s purported struggle for objectivity, this opening chapter will be concerned with the relationship between film as record andas representation, centred on the idea – or ideal – of an originalunadulterated truth; although many of the films to be cited also contain a voice-over, this analysis will focus on the use of newsreel and other raw or accidental footage and archive. The material to be considered will be the Zapruder footage of the assassination of President Kennedy, the compilation films of Emile de Antonio and The Atomic Café.
