John Grierson, born in Scotland, is one of the best documentarians in the world today. He was inspired by Walter Lippmann. He loved the documentary philosophy of Robert Flaherty.
While working for the BBC, Grierson’s documentaries helped maintain the state’s status quo. He worked with the aim that the public opinion should be in favor of the state. John Grierson believed that documentaries should be used as a tool for social education and public education.
He has made great efforts to keep in mind the objective that people can get a good education through documentaries. Grierson has used filmmaking as a powerful tool to highlight various issues in life.
Various social conflicts in the industrial society of the democratic world erupted in his documentary. The strength of the film lies in the fact that it presents a different reality to the audience. He worked on how to improve the lives of the common people during the Great Depression when the people of Britain were in dire straits.
He talked about political and social reforms. Along with his sister Ruby, some of the talented swimmers have produced documentaries for the government and big corporations. The bureaucratic complexities of industrialized society and the nature of modern society are revealed in his films.
He believed that documentaries could work to maintain social cohesion. John Grierson advocated separating documentaries from entertainment films. Documentaries should not be made with any commercial purpose in mind.