foundfootage

Found footage is a film and video technique in which the narrative is presented as recovered or discovered videotape, film stock, or digital recordings. The footage is typically attributed to characters within the story and presented as if it were real evidence. This approach aims to create immediacy and verisimilitude, often using first-person or documentary-style storytelling and a handheld or amateur look.

Origins and development: The method traces to earlier works such as Cannibal Holocaust (1980) and other faux-documentary films; it matured into a mainstream genre with The Blair Witch Project (1999), which used a low-budget, improvised aesthetic to imply authenticity. Since then, many genres beyond horror have employed it.

Characteristics: diegetic footage captured by cameras within the story, often with limited resources, shaky cam, unscripted dialogue, found sound; narrative usually presented through recovered footage assembled post hoc; often uses time stamps, on-screen devices, and a lack of voiceover.

Notable examples: The Blair Witch Project (1999), Paranormal Activity (2007), Cloverfield (2008), REC (2007), Unfriended (2014) uses computer-screen framing; the VHS series (2012–2014) as an anthology.

Impact and reception: found footage is closely associated with horror and low-budget filmmaking but has broader use in documentary and thriller narratives. It is credited with reviving realism in cinema, while criticisms focus on manipulation of authenticity, overreliance on shock, and ethical concerns about depicting violence.