reality wearing a costume it half-designed itself.
means a film that blends real people, places, or events with invented narrative or staged scenes, refusing to fully commit to either fact or fiction.
from the term fuses documentary and fiction, gaining traction in film theory through the 20th century as directors like robert flaherty staged real inuit life for nanook of the north in 1922, essentially inventing the genre by lying a little to tell a bigger truth.
nanook of the north — 1922, flaherty restaged inuit traditions already abandoned
close-up — 1990 kiarostami film, real trial reenacted by its actual people
the arbor — 2010, actors lip-sync real interviews about a poet's life
catfish — 2010, blurred lines between real deception and staged reveal