Documentary Films

The Kenyon College IRB addresses issues of confidentiality risks, privacy breaches and other human subjects' protection concerns in the development of research projects at the College including Documentary Films/Videos.

The IRB reviews activities involving the production of documentaries on a project-by-project basis taking into consideration:

• that the subjects of documentaries very possibly meet the regulatory definition of "human subjects" because they are living, identifiable persons about whom data and/or potentially sensitive information is obtained and
• that the purpose of many documentaries meet the regulatory definition of "research" which includes the concept of the intention to increase or develop generalizable knowledge. "(45 CFR 46.102 (l)) defines research as "...a systematic investigation, including research development, testing, and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable knowledge. Activities that meet this definition constitute research for purposes of this policy, whether or not they are conducted or supported under a program that is considered research for other purposes. "

Documentary projects can be exempt from the federal regulations regarding the protection of human subjects in research; however, they are not necessarily exempt from IRB review. Kenyon Documentary makers, even if they believe their project is not human subjects research, should submit an IRB application. The IRB may indeed find that the project is exempt from further review, but the IRB must make that determination.

The Administrator and Chair of the IRB review the application to determine if the project is exempt from further review. Documentary filmmakers may not initiate a project that they believe is exempt until they have received formal notice of concurrence from the IRB.

Although documentary media may not meet the definition of research, this neither relieves documentary makers of ethical responsibility nor does it excuse them from the obligation to obtain informed consent to participate. Given that intellectual property (personal histories and experiences) is being obtained from the participants, many of the same concerns of participant consent for research apply. Individuals being filmed should be provided with information about the purpose of the project, their rights, possible benefits and risks of participating, whether there is to be compensation and how much, and information about whom to contact if there are questions. Individuals who do not speak English should be presented with documents written in a language understandable to them.

The IRB is particularly interested in reviewing the information sheet (i.e., the informed consent) and the release form. The information/consent form and release form serve two different functions and should be kept separate. One copy of both the information/consent and release form must be provided to each participant and a copy of each placed in the file of the documentary maker. Signed forms should be kept by the filmmaker or their department for three years after the conclusion of the project.

Resources

Honest Truths: Documentary Filmmakers on Ethical Challenges in Their Work   - Center for Social Media, American University, School of Communication, 2009.

Honest Truths: Looking at a Groundbreaking Ethics Report, Five Years Later - BY PATRICIA AUFDERHEIDE, [ida International Documentary Association.

New York Film Academy - Student Resources - Documentary Filmmaking

The Documentary Life - Top Resources For Documentary Filmmakers

Top 10 Video Interviewing Tips For Documentary Filmmaking - How to interview someone to capture the best quotes and content for your film