01 Identify your need
Before treating an image as documentation, ask when and how it was filmed. Real people may re-enact events; fiction may use real locations. Close-up explores this boundary. Record uncertainties, then read edition notes afterwards to avoid spoilers.
02 Check in practice
Testimony, archive and re-enactment have different status. In The Thin Blue Line, compare witness words with reconstructed scenes. In The Battle of Algiers, reportage style is not direct documentation. Evaluate narrative force and evidence quality separately.
03 Take action
After viewing, turn a claim into a precise question about date, place, identity or quotation. Find an authored, dated source and assess what it establishes. Edition notes identify the work and context; they do not replace historical research. Retain room for what the film cannot establish.
Frequently asked questions
Can a real person re-enact their story?
Yes. Distinguish identity from filming conditions. Documentary status does not remove staging choices.