I LNLT 1 RADIO DOCUMENTARY

I Structure
Aims and Objectives
Introduction
The Nature of Documentary
Research for the Documentary
The Documentary Narration
Organizing the Documentary
1.5.1 The Organizing Function
1.5.2 Developing thc Idc;~\
T h e Feature
1.6.1 Feature Product~on
1.6.2 Types of Scripts and Method\
Summing Up
Aids to Answers

1.0 AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

I After a study of this unit, you will be able to:

II atate the nature of a radio documentary and radio fea+ure/magazine

organise a radio documentary
learn to script a radio documentary

1 state the rules of writing a radio feature.

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1.1 INTRODUCTION
In I he last unit of Block 1 we discussed scriptwriting for Radio talk and Profile Yet
another way of reaching the public through Ratlio is by means of documentaries,
features and interviews. This unit will introduce you to scripting for a documcmary
ancl a feature. The Radio documentary is the most difficult and complex of d l factual
forms. FactuaI forms are directed towards presenting facts about people, things and
f l
evcnts that are around us, the others being features and magazines. You should
remember that the norms for scriptwriting that wc discussed in Unit 3 Block 1, are
fundamental. In this unit, you will find how these norms apply to specific forms like
the radio documentary and feature while the next unit will tell you how to apply the
norms to radio interviews and discussions.
I
1 1.2 THE NATURE OF DOCUMENTARY
We should begin by conceding that the term 'docun~enlary'is not easy to define. In
the broadcast sense, documentary is any feature or programme that is based on
'documents'. Defined this way, it is a form directed towards presenting a factual
record about-real people, things and events. It sets out not just to 'emertain' but [ t i
cxplore. However, any programme that deals with factual information is not
I documentary. A documentary goes a step further or several steps f u r t h e r . h a t does
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a documentary do? It may attempt to persuade. This indeed was seen to be the
funthion of documentary earlier on, till communication studies revealed that it was
not so easy to persuade. A documentary could therefore, be seen to persuade,
con~municatea message or just provide insight, It may either advocate a solution to a
problem or, simply, articulate a problem. Whatever its intent, the social relevance of
documentary is immense.
Writing for Radio-ll
Because documentary strives to influence people's thoughts and actkms, it differs
from 01ther factual progrfunmes and is consequently charged with a cnro(iod
quality. Its purpose is not merely to report facts and events but focus on the most
moving;examples. it is this compelling f a c t ~that
r gives documentary a sense of the
DRARIATLC. It is not the drama of the make-believe but one that stems from real lifepr
''dram P at your doors^", SO to speak. It is dramatic also in that it adds an artistic
purpose to journalistic and socioiogical aims.

Noted filmmaker John Grierson was the fist to use the word 'do&umentaryYto
describe "creative treatNent of actuality". ~roducersof documen- whether on
radio, television or film,generally learn to expect (and confront) a lot of d e n t
criticism. That is because documentary goes beyond a news broadcast and deals with
not just what is happeniog but also why it is happening. Thus documentary can be
seen to raise controversiies and encourage debate.

In documentaries, the role of the writer and the role otthe producer merge. Tbe
writer must know tbe process of proddon well and preferably be involved witb
it. Only rarely does a documentary script represent everything appearing on the
programme. The writeriproducer of documentary has to depend greatly on
spontaneous developmehts and improvisation in the field. Completely written
documentaries were very common after World War 11 but over the years they have
been largely replaced by programs made on actual location, featuring actual
happenings. If rigidly scripted, radio documentary tends to sound staied and is
hardly ever very exciting.

Exercise 1
Listen carefully to a few radio documentaries. Can you come up with a iew proposals
that would serve to highlight the 'drama at your doorstep*?After you've finished,
check with aids-to-mers in section 1.8 for some more ideas.
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You have seen before that documentary concentrates on the most moving examples.
You'll notice that topic$ such as child labour, misuse of public property and power, ,
labour in the unorganiz;ed sector, etc. are actually part of a greater issue. You are,
therefore, not just concentratingon a petty local issue but selecting part of a W t e r
whole. Therefore, thew themes are sigdicant and as you can see, some are
controversial too. Howher, it should be clarified that drama at your doorstep
doesn't always hare to be a controversial or topical subject. It d d be on
personalities, ways of Ue, different cultures, art, history, science, medicine and every
other thing. You will rqmember that Satyajit Ray made some very good
documentaries on nonitopical and non-controversial subjects-on the great literary
figure Rabindranath Tagore, the dancer Bala Saraswady and fhe artist h o d Behari
Mukherjee.

1.3 RESEARCH FOR THE DOCUMENTARY

Since writers and prodpcers of documentary deal with facts, they must develop
techniques for disco~edin~ what the facts are. Research depends a great deal on the
resources that are available. Research may either be conducted by an individual or by
a large organization, dbpending on the resources available. In India, writers for
documentary are u s d y left to their own devices for research. S/he has to access
her/himseIf to aU infomation that can possibly be got or is required for the
programme productioa. In documentary production there are very few things worse
than weak research. I

Before going out with khe taperecorder, some basic research must be completed.
There are three main sources for research:
 First, library search. This does not just mean looking up whatever there is in the
library but also What is called 'fugitive' literature. These are mostly unpublished
soLlrces of information available with non-governmeptal organisations and voluntary
agencies working in that area.

Second, consultation with subject experts-t hose who are well-acquainted with the
issue. If, for instance, one has to make a documentary on a water barrage k m g built,
it is not enough to talk to people involved with the building of it but also ihose
affected by it. In this instance, it could be tribals who may be displaced because of
the barrage. Therefore, they too are subject experts. Perhaps a better term to use
than 'subject experts' is resource people.

Third, it is important to conduct location research. This involves visiting the actual
laxtion and conducting a first-hand survey of what is happening.

Exercise 2
YIN are probably tempted and getting ready to script a radio documentary by now. If
you were to write a script on libraries, how would you conduct your research? After
1 you finish list your sources and check with the checklist provided in the
I aids-to-answers in section 1.8 at the end.

lt.4 THE DOCUMENI'ARY NARRATION

CXef among the tools that a writer of documentary needs is mastery of the art of
\writing namtion. l'his, of course, does not mean that a documentary has to have
rmmtion but it is only the very rare radio documentary that does away with narration
cxqdetely. In documentaries, the narration should ideally be written after the
p m p m m e has been edited since it's only then that the writer knows what material
11eedenarrative support. m e narration is written before the final edited programme,
it runs the risk of being supe-rfluousand redundant.

Narration can reinforce the effect of a programme in a number of ways. It can tie,
emphasize or interptet what else is being said and heard. In providing explanations
'the writer must toe the tried tine'bet wegn say1ng too much and saying too little.
U ~ e e w a r narration
y (a great temptation for-writers) not only clutters a
dwuneptary but insults.the inW&ence of the audience.

IWption may also provide an interpretation which enriches'the contribution of a

taped excupt. It also helps make transitions from one idca to another. The audience
can be told where they are and whak they will be going. Narration is effective for
presenting the basic ideas of a script, for defining its attitude and summarizing its
dusions.
Finally, narration may enhance the emotional quality of a taped insert. All the 'rules'
for writing a s d p t that we had talked about in Unit 3 (Block 1) apply here as well.
Writing for Radio-11 Always remember thdt the narration is meant to be 'spoken' and not read as
literature. What is imbrtant is that it should sound natural, easy,.flowing,
spontaneous or extempore. Moreover, the narration should be well integrated into
the programme and ptiobably written at the very last when one has c d l d
everything else that wpuld be part of the programme.

Your assignment is to1listen to a few radio documentaries. These are usually

broadcast on ~aturda* at 9.30 p.m. and repeated on Sundays at 7.00 p.m. This time,
take special note of t+ narration. What function does the narration serve? If you
hear one that you pa3iculariy like, try and identify why you like it. h e aids given
in section 1.8 might help you.

1.5 ORGANIZING THE DOCUMENTARY

The doqnentaxy, since it usually has a specific message to communicate, must be
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organized in order to clear and effective. Structure, i.e., the sequence of
presentation, is very +portant. There are no hard and fast rules about StNCtUTe, and
mepia professionals copstantly experiment with it. In the early days of documentaries
(both in film and radio), structures were rigid and standardized. A common one was
the problem-solution cture. In this case, a cwtain problem would be taken up,
propounded,% d- then a solutim would be proposed. Smce then
have undergone a chqge. Producets and writers are no longer compelled to 'solve'
problems. Some &cun)entaries are simply articulation of probleans. So you can see
that structures are not formalized.

Nevertheless, a writer m o t neglect structure, because content is conveyed not just

through 'words' but th&structure as well. Take the novel Chronde of a Death
Foretold by Gabfiel cia Marquez Marquez'uses the device of an unnamed,
shadowy narrator, visi
investigation into theg......
the scene of the killing many years later, and beginniag an
the book and its narrator probe slowly,painfully
through the mists of haCf accurate memories, equivocations, contradictory versions,
trying to establish what happened and why, and achieve only provisional answers'.

1.5.1 The O q a n i b g Fmwtion

Structure plays an impsrtant part in documentary writing. The material should be
organized in such a wai that it indicates the various relationships between facts and
ideas of the programmq. This pattern, linlring facts and ideas, is the outliue of the
structure. It lists the'i- of the documentary and separates the major ideas from the
subordinate ones. This putline provides the structural foundation on which you base
the programme plan.

Very often, people findithe making of an outline a tedious and dif6cult task and are
tempted t o a p this psu/t of the process. Neglecting this very crucial process can lead
to a programme that best, fuzzy, and at worst,oompletdy f d e s s . Writing an
outline not only writer to get everything sorted out in his/her head but also
the important points. An outline, furthemnore, he!@ to
avoid overstresing or jnderstressing supporting points. It directs the programme
towards its objectives amhd at the same time leads to the exclusion of irrelevancies.

The organizational plan of a documentary should have several qualities-simpliaty,

logical omncction and v ty .(Here, we should add a n a c of caution .badlogal
structuring. Exceptions e always made for e x c e p t i d documentaries.) A major step
8 to creating a plan with l rese qualities is to make sure that the Scrip 'a dammataa by
 one overriding thought to which all the other ideas in the programme are related. Radiu Documentary
These supporting ideas, in turn, should be arranged to show their relationship to the
1 main thought and one another.
1 Your outline is not likely to remain intact throughout the research and production
process. You should look upon the outline as a tentative plan till all your facts are in.
A documentary writer-producer should have an attitude that accommodates revisions
in order to improve the programme. Similarly, s/he should be flexible enough to
revise and tighten the structural outline.

1 1.5.2 Developing the Ideas

1
The first step in outlining your material is to determine the basic purpose of your
script. You may want to arouse concern about a specific social problem or political
issue: convince people to accept an idea or develop a certain attitude; reinforce an
existing attitude or motivate your audience to carry out a specific course of action.

The next step is to develop a preliminary statement of the central idea of the
1 programme. It should be a one-sentence expression of what your programme wants
to communicate. 'lhis statement may also include the basic purpose of the
programme. Thus the purpose and central idea can be expressed as follows: To

I
convince the audience that capital punishment is wrong. Next, you should write
down the main ideas and the supporting ideas and make their relationship very clear.
As you write down this material you should ask: What are the main points of my
programme? What are the subordinate points? What is clearly the supporting
t material? The responses to these questions will guide you in setting down the outline.
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I 3nce all your points are down, you'll find a pattern emerging. The pattern can be in
I :Ilronological order, a problem-solution order or any other order. To establish an
~rganizationalplan, you should keep the following in mind:
)I
Write the outline in complete sentences. Incomplete sentences or single words

1 are usually manifestations of vague ideas and muddled feelings. Nor will it reveal
whether the various ideas in the script are related. at all.

1
I
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I.) Restrict the number of main points to a reasonable number. Most good
programmes have no fewer than two main points and no more thah five.
ii) You must check to see that the transitions are done well. The ideas must lead to
one another and not randomly jump from one to the other.
v) Avoid the use of compound or multiple idea sentences, and
I) Express points as positive statements and not as questions.

' herrise 4
Why is structure important in a Radio documentary?

bercise 5
What are the various steps in developing an idea?

After writing down your answers, check with the study material on which these
exercises are based. (1.5)
Writing for Radio-I1

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I
1.6 THE FEATURE I

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There are various tnjes of features. These programmes generally aim ro entertain,
inform and sometime$ even a u e n c e thought and action. Subjects could include a
leading news story of the day, a sidelight on the news, a report from Europe, or an
essay on environment@ degradation.

In preparing features, you may encounter many of the problems faced in producing
documentaries and dormational programmes. A sound structural plan is as
important to feature Wting as to other programmes dealing with information. You
should clearly define the genehl purpose and the central idea before you start
writing. A relevant and logical succession of supporting points should also be
prepared. I

The beginning and ending of a broadcast feature are particularly important. Your
beginning should be atile to 'catch' the listener's attention. If your beginning fails to
grip, chances are that $ou have lost your listeners. The conclusion is equally
important because it lehves the audience with a last impression which will ensure
memorability, or guarantee that what you have written will not soon be forgotten.

Experience has shown that material with certain qualities has a high potentiality for
maintaining interest. Among the devices that will help to hold your audience are the
following: the introduc$on refers to something striking, novel, or unusual; references
to the familiar; ideas in opposition (conflict); suspense (slow disclosure) and specific
material which makes abstract ideas concrete.

The feature today uses iinumber of forms and techniques of broadcasting; and
producers have to know the ptential of each form and technique, and the best way
to utilise them in a feat&e. They are:
The running wmmenky
The field interview
The eye-witness account
Recorded actuality
Canned music
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Drama excerpt

Exercise 6
Just as you had made a few proposals for a radio documentary in Exercise 1, now try
to come up with some ideas for features (magazines). When you finish, you can
check for some more ideas in the aids-to-answers given in section 1.8

1.6.1 Feature Produttion

One of the richest and m q t rewarding sources to draw on for features is the world in
which we live. The Outside Broadcast Van and travelling microphone have, over the
 Radio Uocuntentary
years, thoroughly exploited this field. Mobile recording techniques have frequently
helped to garner exciting and priceless sound for the feature producer, whose
bus~nessis with reality-real men and women, in their natural habitat-at home, at
work or at play. It is no longer necessary for the feature producer to imitate'reality.
He can now go direct to the sources-photographs in sound-edit and shape them. It is
a capacity unique to the feature programme-the stuff of reality-shaped in a
disciplined way and patterned into a form, controlled by a single, creative mind. The
fealure programme marked the birth of creat~vebroadcasting.
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Every feature calls for an idea, research and a script. Some features need actors,
sound effects and music. Many call for extensive recordings of sound dnd voices. All
call or three main processes: a) Research, b) Writing, and c) Production.

1.6.2 Types of Scripts and Methods

Thtxe are two types of scripts involved in feature-writing:
a) The script commissioned from the writer, and
b) The script written by the producer himself.

How does the writer/producer go to work?

He will throw himself into his research e.g. the slums of Delhi, the coal mines of
Bilmc, or the back streets of Cdcutta. He will talk by the hour, to anyone who has
even a passing acquaintance with the subject. He will prepare lists of likely experts
ancl actuality sounds. He will audition narrators and voices. He will undertake long
journeys, if the budget permits, to secure authentic first-hand information. Finally he
will write his basic script.

Wren the script is commissiontd from the writer, it has the advantage of bringing
two minds and two skills to bear on the subject in hand. The writer has expert
knowledge. He is the one who knows. The producer is the one who transforms, into
nidlio f o m , the saipt. He, by his command.of techniques, sense of timing and
sound-values, makes the author's conception come alive at the microphone and on
the qk.As radio features have developed, the tendency has been for the scriptwriter.
to :be his own producer.

In the second case, where the wfiter and producer are one, he 'hears' the programme
as he writes his script, quite often with specific voices and effects in mind.

But common to both methods are three main processes by which a feature is
produced: a) Research, b) Writing, and c) Production. AU s u ~ f ufeature l writing
is ir distillation of personal experience. The search for material-the living contact
wilh what one is writing about-is really the heart of the matter. This keeps the vision
fresh and renews the inspiration. This is no mechanical word-spinning.

G c d documentary brushes aside secondary sources and dismisses the hearsay

wilmess, whether its medium is radio, film or TV. It can take the inquiring mind, the
alert ear and the selective eye and the recording microphones or cameras, into every
comer of the contemporary world and penetrates into the deepest recesses of human
experience. Its task (and destiny) is to mirror the true inwardness of a subject.

Exercise 7
Consider the relative advantages and disadvantages of the two types of scripts used in
Features.
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\ Y.
Writing for Radio-U

After writing down ypur answers, check with the study material on which this
exercise is based. (1.6)
Exercise 8
Try to script a radio profile of 5 minutes duration of the famous Indian Film-maker
Satyajit Ray. You can use all resources at your disposal for research. (Check with
aids to answers - 1.8)

Documentary is a fbctual form that could attempt to influence, persuade or

provide insight.
Because it attempts to influence people's thoughts, it's often charged with a strong
emotional quality. A documentary however, is broad in itsdehitiion with its,
boundaries everexpanding.
Documentary, unUe other factual forms, asks 'why'. This often makes it
controversial.
Research is of fundamental importance to documentary. '

A documentary scriptwriter should be fluent with the art of writing narration.

Organization lies at ithe base of documentary scriptwriting.
The first step to orgbizing a documentary is to draw up an outline.
An organizational plan should be simple, logical and clear.
Feature/Magazine programmes are other factual forms that seek to entertain,
inform and sometimes even influence thought and action.

1.8' AIDS TO ANSWERS

' Exercise 1
The following are some random ideas for writing proposh for radio documentaries:
i) Vested interests in your neighbowhood are not allowing a school for the
handicapped to be constructed so that they can build a park.
ii) Your local municihal authorities are turning a blind eye to u n a u t h o ~
buildings.
iii) Parks and public spaces are being misused for private functions.
iy) Street vendors are forced to pay money to the police.
v) The little boy who pells peanuts near your house earns money to support his
younger brothers.
VI) A worker at a construction site nearly loses his leg in an accident and Radio Documentary
consequently his livelihood.
vit) Your local ration shop seems to have supplies for very selected people.
viii)?'he local kindergarten school is being run by people who (you get to know)
haven't the required qualifications.

Exercise 2
To make sure you have covered all possible sources of research, check with the
chezklist below:
i) Libraries: Have there been books published on the issue or similar issues?
2) Has any magazine/newspaper carried an article on it, or something similar or
related?
iii) Who wrote the articles? Can you meet him/her? Who were hidher resource
people? Is it possible to meet them?
iv) Do voluntary organisations have any fugitive literature on the issue?
v) Who are the people who are most familiar with the subject? You must contact
them at all costs.
h) Who are the people linked with the issue? Who stands to gain? Who stands to
lose? Who are the people who could have helped matters? Why haven't they?
vii:~As you can see, writing/producing documentary involves a lot of original
research and legwork: once you have made a satisfactory list of possible sources,
you can begin your research. You will find that once you start collecting
information, the going gets better and better and one thing leads to another.

Exercise 3
What does the narration do?
-- Link ideas
- Provide information
- Reinforce arguments
- Clarify
- lnterpret
-- Emphasize

Also note whether the narration follows the norms of scriptwriting. Is it brief or
er.cessive? Meandering or incisive? Formal or informal? Emotional or unemotional?

Exercise 6
%me more ideas for features/mapines:
The men who paint cinema hoardings
a The famous painter and arcbit- Satish Gujral
e Street plays and their amtemporary relevance
n The chipko movement to save trees
A discasion on media autonomy
e 4commentary on the French Impressionist painters
Sexism and the media
A debate on growing eucalyptus trees
a Calcutta's metro railway.

'iou can see that the options are really vast. You will also notice that many of the
topics above are good also for documentaries. As far as topics are concerned there
iue no barriers really.' It depends entirely on the handling of the subject.
Writiog for Radio-U

i) Your research deeds to be absolutely complete. Your draft should be writtea

only after you Have exhausted all possible sources of information like libraries,
news agencies, slewspaper and magazine offices (archives) and meeting people
who may be a uainted with Ray. Yob may also have discovered that Ray also
features in thc"$ncydoped~a Brittanica.
ii) Remember that you have a.s@ed time slot. Your script has to be for 5 mins.
Since we can speak roughly 100 words a minute, your script should not exceed
500 words. ,
iii) Check to see whether you have all the important landmarks and si@cant
information about Ray's career. Tally with the list below:
Ray's meeting with Renoir in Calcutta
The r e l a of Pather Panchali (Song of the Little R a d ) in 1955
Completiqn of the Apu Trilogy. Aparajito.wins the Golden Lion of St.
Mark in Wenice
Ray be@ composing his own music
Charulata in 1964. Ray considers this to be his best film.
The UrbN Trilogy - 1970s
Ray's for children
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Ray,the vhiter, artist and musician.
iv) Avoid too many dates, numbers and specific information. Only significant dates
should be hicludd, like Pather Panchali being released in 1955 and setting a
new trend in Indiw Cinema, or Charulata in 1965, a film that Ray considers to
be his best and is undoubtedly, one of the greatest films to be made in India.
v) Selection should play an essential role. With a multifaceted personality like Ray,
you will be strongy tempted to say more than what your audience would care to
hear. You will W e to select and present information very carefully.
vi) Anecdotes are excellent devices signposting, i.e. making it easy for the audience
to remember. Anecdotes make abstract ideas concrete. How, for instance, could
one make a statwent about Ray's enormous reserves of knowledge and
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information? Ben ali writer, Purnendu Pattrea once wrote: "One day Allen
G i b e r g , Poet of the angry-hungry generation, come to see Ray. All through the
evening Ginsbergspoke about the Cinema, Ray spoke about American poetry."