cinéma vérité

American  

[sin-uh-muh ver-i-tay, see-nay-mah vay-ree-tay] / ˈsɪn ə mə ˌvɛr ɪˈteɪ, si neɪ mɑ veɪ riˈteɪ /

noun

1. a technique of documentary filmmaking in which the camera records actual persons and events without directorial control: introduced in France in the 1950s.

2. a film using this technique or a simulation of it.

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cinéma vérité British  

/ sinema verite /

noun

1. films characterized by subjects, actions, etc, that have the appearance of real life

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Etymology

Origin of cinéma vérité

1960–65; < French cinéma-vérité literally, cinema-truth, coined as a translation of Russian kinoprávda, a documentary technique developed by the Soviet filmmaker Dziga Vertov (1896–1954)

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cinéma vérité

Since the film is a light cinéma vérité style, Iwerks doesn’t editorialize as to how it all did get done.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 22, 2026

Part photojournalism, part nature doc, part cinéma vérité, part Western, the film defies categorization.

From New York Times ● Jun. 8, 2023

Ms. Reichert’s work merged the dispassionate-observer traditions of cinéma vérité and journalism-rooted techniques of interviews and backstory context.

From Washington Post ● Dec. 2, 2022

On the same bill is another cinéma vérité gem, 1968’s “Hey, Mama,” a slice-of-life look at Venice’s Black neighborhood of Oakwood.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 15, 2022

I firmly believe that too many films have become very grounded in kind of a, as you said, cinéma vérité .

From Salon ● Oct. 1, 2020

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