cinéma vérité
Americannoun
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a technique of documentary filmmaking in which the camera records actual persons and events without directorial control: introduced in France in the 1950s.
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a film using this technique or a simulation of it.
noun
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)
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
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
Mr. Blackwood filmed his subjects in the unobtrusive, no-frills cinéma vérité style, seeking to capture the creative process behind their art, often in studio visits.
From New York Times ● Mar. 30, 2023
His signature style combines a cinéma vérité approach with "gonzo fearlessness" and "empathetic sensitivity."
From Salon ● Dec. 9, 2022
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
The cinéma vérité landmark captured with acute intimacy a mercurial Bob Dylan — then only a few years older than Eilish is now — as he invented himself on a 1965 U.K. tour.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 16, 2021
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
