Watch Documentaries Online

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What is a Documentary? The main purpose of a documentary is to document reality into mediums such as film and television in order to maintain historical records and instruct others. In recent times, many good documentaries are found online in digital production.

There are so many top documentaries here you’d think you’re in documentary heaven! Free documentaries from famous presenters like David Attenborough, Louis Theroux as well as major production houses like BBC, SBS and more, have made up some of the best documentaries of 2012 and of course all other years. Watch documentaries online at the better place to watch them. Some of the best documentaries online are right here :)

There’s a depth in documentary films that leaves an indelible impression on the minds of the viewers. The subjects covered in documentaries range from generating awareness about a social practice to events in the life of a celebrity.

Watching a documentary is like going deep into the subject to find a chord that touches the viewers. A story woven around facts that pulls at the emotional strings of the people is what separates documentaries from other films.

Modern documentaries cover many genres including science, society and even sexuality. At Documentary Addict we also have the best collection of crime documentaries. Whatever genre you love - we've got all the top documentaries here. Whether you're here because you like to learn new things, enjoy educational movies, or you are just plain addicted to watching documentaries - There are literally thousands of them here to enjoy. Sit back and relax for a few hours!

A Bit of History

The word documentary was reportedly coined by Scottish documentarian, John Grierson, around 1926. He was of the opinion that maintaining originality is better than creating fictional characters lending a real aspect to the subject.

The period from 1920s till 1970s gave documentary films a dynamic new identity with films made on different genres like romanticism, city life, camera angles and newsreels.

1920s – The Romantic Period

Made in 1922 by Robert Flaherty, Nanook of the North, showcased romanticism in documentary films, even showing how subjects would have lived 100 years back. Walter Ruttman's Berlin, Symphony of a City; Alberto Cavalcanti's Rien Que les Heures and Dziga Vertov's Man with the Movie Camera focused on people within their environment.

Kino-Pravda or cinematic truth utilized the camera angles, like stop motion and time lapse, to portray reality accurately. Depicting events that had already happened, newsreels were sometimes staged during film making.

1940s – The Propaganda Period

By the 1940s, propaganda films like Leni Riefenstahl's Triumph of the Will, had taken center stage. Interestingly, it was commissioned by Adolf Hitler. Social and environmental awareness took over film making like Frank Capra's Why We Fight.

In Britain, Grierson and other filmmakers became known as the Documentary Film Movement. Grierson, Basil Wright, Humphrey Jennings and other filmmakers combined propaganda and facts in an artistic manner with films like Drifters, Songs of Ceylon and Coal Face among others.

1950s – The Technique Period

The 1950s to 1970s brought technical aspects to film making such as portable sync sounds and the use of light with films like Lonely Boy by Pennebaker and Don't Look Back by Koenig and Kroitor.

Following Grierson's definition of documentary as creative treatment of actuality, bringing people closer to topics or issues by providing educational information or describing people in a factual manner is not an easy task. These filmmakers paved the way for modern documentaries which encapsulate various shades of subjects and treatments.

Today, documentary films have their own dedicated viewership and their number is constantly rising. The popularity of documentaries can be gauged by the fact that even mega producers like Harvey Weinstein have joined the documentary world. In the end, film making or even media as a whole, is sometimes expressing one's belief but ensure you keep your mind open and learn from the wonderful experiences that documentaries bring. We really hope you enjoy the site and come back to it regularly as you'll find it's the best place to watch documentary films online free. Remember Documentary Addict, your documentary channel for watching online documentaries free, and please leave some feedback or give us a like on Facebook. We hope you agree, this documentary heaven you see before you is certainly the best place to watch documentaries online!