The Growing Trend of Verbatim Films in Cinema

A growing trend in filmmaking involves the creation of "verbatim films," which utilize dialogue directly from real-life transcripts and recordings to reconstruct events.

Recent examples of this approach include Reality (2023), depicting whistleblower Reality Winner's interrogation, and Uppercase Print (2020), set in Ceaușescu-era Romania. Two more such films recently released in UK cinemas are Ira Sachs' Peter Hujar's Day, based on conversations from 1974 New York, and Kaouther Ben Hania's The Voice of Hind Rajab, which reconstructs an emergency call to rescue a six-year-old in Gaza City in January 2024.

Historical Precedents on Screen

Historical precedents for word-for-word adaptations include films such as Sophie Scholl: The Final Days (2005) and Conspiracy: The Trial of the Chicago 8 (1987). The first full-length verbatim feature film, London Road (2015), adapted from a stage production, used remarks from real residents regarding the Ipswich serial murders and set them to music.

Theatrical Origins

Many verbatim adaptations have theatrical origins. Uppercase Print began as a play by Gianina Cărbunariu, and the transcript for Reality was first adapted for Tina Satter's 2019 play Is This a Room. The stage genre has a long history, dating back to the 1930s Federal Theatre Project's "living newspapers" and Eric Bentley's 1970s play Are You Now or Have You Ever Been?, which drew from the House Committee on Un-American Activities hearings.

Motivations and Stylistic Choices

This shift in filmmaking coincides with an increase in hybrid documentaries, which blend factual and fictional elements.

Filmmakers adopting the verbatim style often cite the dramatic potential of real events and the authenticity offered by direct transcription.

For instance, the dialogue in Peter Hujar's Day and the account in The Voice of Hind Rajab required minimal alteration due to their inherent dramatic quality or real-world gravity. The new wave of verbatim films frequently employs vérité cinematography, characterized by closeups, handheld cameras, and natural lighting, to enhance a sense of immediacy and direct engagement.