This practice led thesis is an exploration of the ways in which theory can inform practice in documentary filmmaking. Section 1 of the thesis provides an embedded review of literature in order to offer the reader a critical evaluation of the theoretical debates that have informed my documentary practice. This section analyses issues associated with definitional debates on documentary film, while also addressing the formal features associated with what Bill Nichols (1991; 2001) called modes of documentary. The work of particular filmmakers will be discussed, namely Dziga Vertov, Jean Rouch and the city symphony makers of the early 20th century, in relation to how their ideas and film work have had a major impact on my own approach to filmmaking. Section 2 is the practical portfolio of work itself and acts as an exploration of theory within a practical context. The audio-visual texts include, A Film About Nice (2010), a dawn-to-dusk city symphony, which focuses on capturing the everyday life of a European city. It echoes the tradition of the City Symphony makers of the early 20th Century, however the significant difference here is that I explore some of the visual techniques adopted by the filmmakers and explore them within a sonic context. This film can be seen as an exploration of the impact rhythm has on signification within film. Mechanized Deconstruction (2011) is a recording of a live performance at Documentary Now 2011. This was my first venture into producing documentary films within a live context, via the use of DJ/VJ technologies. There is a cine-poem, which acts as a collaborative approach to documentary, combining the work of the poet and the work of the filmmaker. It also acts an example of how some of the techniques I have developed during the live performance of documentary have had an impact on the documentary films that I have since produced. The Mill (2016) adopts a similar structure to The City Symphony, however this film can be seen as an Industrial Symphony, in that the focus here is on the rhythm, movement and the sonic dimension of the machine. In many ways this film can be seen as that which encapsulates the essence of the formalist approach I adopt when producing documentary films. Driven By Machines (2017) uses footage from The Mill and provides an example of how a filmmaker can de-familiarize actuality footage through post-production technique. This film acts as an ode to the abstract filmmakers such as Man Ray, Len Lye, Viking Eggelling and Hans Richter, all of who used actuality footage and abstracted this footage through manipulation techniques available to them at the time. In summary, Section 2 acts as an audio-visual explication of theory within a practical context. Section 3 is a critical reflection of the practical portfolio of work. Here I aim to explain how I have used certain filmmaking techniques as a way of exploring some of the theoretical concepts outlined in Section 1. This offers the reader an opportunity to gain insight into how theory can inform practice; as such the reader of my films is able to gain insight into authorial intention, therefore the reader is able to make a more informed analysis of my practical portfolio.

This thesis focus on ethical issues within documentary filmmaking in the largest broadcasting institution in Denmark. It is a case study of the documentary serial Generation Hollywood, produced by Danmarks Radio (DR) in 2016. DR has produced many documentaries, using same style and format as in Generation Hollywood. But something is different with this one, and the thesis aims to find out why this one stands out, from the presumption that ethical issues are involved. It examines the participants’ motives and expectations, DR’s intentions and how ethical issues affected the final product. In the attempt to understand the complexity of ethics, a small sample of interviews are conducted and analyzed and presented together with a partial content analysis. The notions of truth, authenticity, and representation are applied as the theoretical framework to understand: not merely ethical procedures, but underlying feelings possessed by the participants.The thesis brings to light that ethical issues are not only embedded in already established procedures but also caused by unforeseen circumstances and participants’ motives in relation to the project. The research shows how ethical issues affect the final representation, especially concerning authenticity. It also shows how a discrepancy between intentions and expectations, and the understanding of truth (in its start-up phase) impacts the process. Furthermore, it concludes that entertainment demands and modern technology can affect how filmmakers treat people when representing them and it explains how the line between the modern ‘everyday life’ documentary and Reality TV is seemingly blurred.

This thesis is an attempt to reflect on my own creative process and put it in relation to  critical ideas and artworks that deals with themes of apocalypse, ecology and political theory. By doing this I hope to examine the role of apocalyptic narratives in our society today and see how my own film relates to these ideas. By putting my artistic process and film in relation to a theoretical framework I hope to discover new perspectives on aesthetics and how to tell an apocalyptic story in our day and age and how this relates to documentary filmmaking and digital culture.  To engage with a critical perspective on the ecological questions regarding my work I am taking help from thinkers such as the finish art historian and media professor Jussi Parikka and his ideas about geology of media where the earth crust itself can be considered a mediating force. I am also introducing the concept of buen vivir presented by the post-colonial theorist Rolando Vásques to critically examine the documentary process in Sápmi. Furthermore, I explore the religious idea of the holy fool who appears in the film from a societal perspective by turning to the media theorist Byung- Chul Han. I also make us of the theologian Ola Sigurdsons ideas about the transcendental power of comedy to understand the more comical sides of my filmmaking.  By putting these theoretical ideas against my practice I try to find an expanded understanding of the apocalyptic film genre and how the artistic process relates to healing and transformation in times of societal and existential crisis.

This research looks at the production of media in Ghana, specifically, film produced in the “Glamour” style or Western-style tradition that originates in its capitol of Accra. The film industry in Ghana, known as Ghallywood, is a vibrant and prolific field in which content is produced and distributed throughout the country for local consumption. Research on production practice, rather than content, can show cross-cultural differentiation in visual media production and also offers a lens through which to explore Ghanaian culture. The following research questions frame this study: What are the production practices of Ghanaian video films? How do Ghanaians communicate the process of creating Ghanaian video films? How do the practice and discourse of the video film production work to create and reinforce messages from the producers to the audiences? This research necessarily departs from looking primarily at the content of films, instead exploring the processes behind the creation of those products. Nick Couldry recognizes practice as an emerging theme in media research and this work focuses on his theory of media practice, in which the focus shifts from a content analysis to what people are actually doing in relation to media and its production. Using visual techniques and on-camera interviews, this work supplements a documentary about Ghanaian filmmaking and the voices that characterize the industry. This research and its visual product show the processes and conflict within the industry, including several different players who are often at odds with one another: students learning film from either academic or trade institutions, professional filmmakers who are either academically trained or self-taught, as well as scholars who provide their perspective on the industry as a whole. This research shows that filmmaking in Ghana is characterized by many competing elements, including a rift in what is known as “Ghallywood.” Two separate industries actually exist: the Accra “glamourwood” industry and its highly localized “kumawood” counterpart based in Kumasi, Ghana. This research also introduces concepts of how Ghanaians see the world and reproduce it in film, with the use of long takes and wide shots. This work illustrates the value of understanding production practices of media products cross-culturally as a departure from the more traditional approach to media studies of content. The attention given to a supplementary visual product in the form of a documentary aims to raise awareness of visual methodology and the value of visual and public anthropology in research and its applications to dissemination to mass audiences beyond academia.

The discipline of film studies is often limited by its own obsessions. Approaches designed to illuminate how we view films, and make films, often limit our thinking, instead. It is not surprising that the analysis of such an extraordinary medium presents endless arguments, debate and inspires the critic or theorist to narrow the field of view in order to make it manageable. Recent work in the fields of cognitive psychology and neuroscience which, when applied to our critical analyses of film, is changing the discipline of film studies. In conjunction with traditional narratology, this interdisciplinary approach enables us to reconfigure the relationship between narrative and spectacle, creating a triangular relationship that draws attention to discourse. This triangular approach affords a more nuanced and comprehensive analysis of how science documentaries affect viewers. In turn, these analyses encourage science filmmakers to recognize discourse as a means of creating more emotionally powerful, aesthetically coherent, and memorable science films. Like a great mind, the discipline of film studies flourishes most when it remains open. The creation of this triangular analytical relationship is merely one way of enhancing our ability to study the effects films have on an audience, on the future of the medium, and on aesthetics as a whole. In seeking an academic and theoretical basis for the gut level notion that films affect us both emotionally and intellectually, it is critical to chart an interdisciplinary course.

The discipline of film studies is often limited by its own obsessions. Approaches designed to illuminate how we view films, and make films, often limit our thinking, instead. It is not surprising that the analysis of such an extraordinary medium presents endless arguments, debate and inspires the critic or theorist to narrow the field of view in order to make it manageable. Recent work in the fields of cognitive psychology and neuroscience which, when applied to our critical analyses of film, is changing the discipline of film studies. In conjunction with traditional narratology, this interdisciplinary approach enables us to reconfigure the relationship between narrative and spectacle, creating a triangular relationship that draws attention to discourse. This triangular approach affords a more nuanced and comprehensive analysis of how science documentaries affect viewers. In turn, these analyses encourage science filmmakers to recognize discourse as a means of creating more emotionally powerful, aesthetically coherent, and memorable science films. Like a great mind, the discipline of film studies flourishes most when it remains open. The creation of this triangular analytical relationship is merely one way of enhancing our ability to study the effects films have on an audience, on the future of the medium, and on aesthetics as a whole. In seeking an academic and theoretical basis for the gut level notion that films affect us both emotionally and intellectually, it is critical to chart an interdisciplinary course.

This dissertation provides possibilities of how documentaries can use games as media to produce critique, and particularly how procedural rhetoric can be used in order to achieve that goal. The research consisted of an analysis of case studies that originated a procedural rhetoric typology to produce critique; and the creation of a documentary game, Deixa-me Falar!. Its playtesting results proved the communicational effectiveness of this type of documentary genre in a context of social critique. This investigation can be useful for filmmakers and game designers who want to experiment the documentary game genre or how games can be used in critical and/or non-fictional environments.

This study examines the way social media changes the way documentaries are developed, produced and distributed. I want investigate how web 2.0 technologies disrupt the documentary sector and the way producers navigate the social media ecology. Research exposed an industry in transformation. New roles, like the Producer for Marketing and Distribution (PMD), the Impact Producer (IP) and a participant-centric mode of documentary filmmaking are revealed. The way users connect via social media has changed the way people interact with each other at work. A balanced real- and virtual world network approach makes a strong and highly central network position for a documentary project possible. Emotional contagion and an authentic online presence create value for a films social media campaign. Both are crucial factors to the mobile multi-device audience expecting a credible social media experience. Research suggests that users accept the risks associated with the way their data is exploited by social networks as long as the user's social media experience is not diminished. The concept of the Global Digital Family is revealed when reappraising social media. I suggest further research into the problem of online authenticity. Kozinets' ideas on Gemeinschafts-type engagement (Kozinets, 2015) shed light on the phenomenon. But exactly when something is perceived as authentic online is still not entirely clear and should be investigated further. I also recommend that the PMD is formally accredited to encourage industry recognition.

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Orientador: Marcius César Soares Freire / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Artes / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-27T13:45:41Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Araujo_JulianoJosede_D.pdf: 16332564 bytes, checksum: f98c8578603358e2a303c0790db93366 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2015 / Resumo: Criado em 1986 pelo indigenista e documentarista Vincent Carelli, o projeto Vídeo nas Aldeias (VNA) objetiva fortalecer as identidades, patrimônios culturais e territoriais dos povos indígenas através dos recursos audiovisuais. O VNA atua como uma escola de cinema para os povos indígenas brasileiros por meio de oficinas de formação em audiovisual realizadas nas aldeias e na sede do projeto, em Olinda, no estado de Pernambuco. Desempenha também um papel fundamental como entidade responsável pela captação de recursos, produção e distribuição dos documentários. Nesse contexto, esta pesquisa analisa 28 documentários da série "Cineastas indígenas" realizados entre 1999 e 2011 no âmbito do projeto VNA. Trata-se de seis curtas-metragens e 22 médias-metragens de cineastas indígenas das etnias Ashaninka, Huni Kui, Kisedje, Kuikuiro, Mbya-Guarani, Panará e Xavante. Essa produção audiovisual de não-ficção é considerada como uma prática de autoetnografia no documentário, à medida que ao conceder a câmera para os indígenas lhes é permitido o que dizer, quando, onde e como filmar, a partir de uma perspectiva interna, na qual eles apresentam suas aldeias, seu cotidiano, sua história, suas festas e rituais, como também os problemas sociais que enfrentam. Nesse sentido, a tese propõe a categoria de documentário autoetnográfico para o corpus analisado, tendo como questões norteadoras: Quais são os procedimentos de criação, métodos de trabalho e condições de realização dos documentários autoetnográficos do projeto VNA? E as posturas éticas, opções estéticas e técnicas neles presentes? Qual a importância desses filmes para as comunidades indígenas que deles participam? Com que finalidade eles são realizados? A partir da análise fílmica, em uma perspectiva textual e contextual, isto é, estabelecendo um diálogo entre elementos internos (imagem, som etc.) e externos dos documentários (entrevistas com realizadores indígenas, equipe do VNA, sujeitos filmados, conceitos das teorias do cinema antropológico e documentário etc.), apresenta-se o estudo do corpus enfatizando, respectivamente, as dimensões ética, estética e política da produção audiovisual de não-ficção do projeto VNA. Considera-se essas três dimensões do discurso fílmico como fundamentais para se compreender melhor a categoria de documentário autoetnográfico que, para além de um conceito dos estudos pós-coloniais, acredita-se constituir em uma tomada de posição e reflexão do campo do cinema diante dos filmes dos realizadores indígenas. A análise dos documentários autoetnográficos do projeto VNA revela: um processo de realização cinematográfica (preparação, filmagem e montagem) no qual a autoria é compartilhada, sendo a ética um elemento presente em todas as etapas; o emprego e a modulação de diferentes gestos estéticos com uma forte influência dos cinemas direto/verdade, mas também questões que emergem com força na produção audiovisual de não-ficção contemporânea, como a encenação e o uso das imagens de arquivo; o papel político desempenhado pelos documentários, tendo em vista que se direcionam aos espectadores não-indígenas, seus enunciatários, para discutir a relação entre história oficial versus história não-oficial, a identidade e cultura indígenas, ou ainda para denunciar, reivindicar e lhes dar visibilidade / Abstract: Created in 1986 by the indigenist and documentary filmmaker Vincent Carelli, the project Vídeo nas Aldeias ¿ VNA (Video in the Villages) aims at reinforcing the identities, cultural and territorial patrimonies of indigenous peoples by means of audiovisual resources. VNA works as a cinema school and provides Brazilian indigenous peoples with workshops on audiovisual production, both in the villages and at the project headquarters, located in the city of Olinda, in the state of Pernambuco. It also plays a fundamental role as the responsible entity for the fundraising, production and distribution of documentaries. In this context, this research analyzes 28 documentaries from "Indigenous Filmmakers", a series produced by VNA from 1999 to 2011. This set of documentaries includes 6 short films and 22 medium-length films by indigenous filmmakers of the ethnic groups Ashaninka, Huni Kui, Kisedje, Kuikuiro, Mbya-Guarani, Panará, and Xavante. This nonfiction audiovisual production is seen as a practice of autoethnography inside the documentary: once the Indians are provided with cameras, they are also allowed to decide what to say, when, where and how to shoot. From an inner perspective, they present their villages, their daily life, their histories, their rituals and traditional events, as well as the social problems they face. That being said, this dissertation argues that the corpus analyzed in this work fit into the category of autoethnographic documentary and presents the following questions: What are the creation procedures, working methods and realization conditions involved in the production of VNA¿s autoethnographic documentaries? And what are the ethical stances, the aesthetic and the technical options presented by them? What is the importance of these films for the indigenous communities that take part in them? For what purpose are they made? The study of the corpus is based on filmic analysis, from textual and contextual perspectives, that is, establishing a dialogue between internal (image, sound etc.) and external (interviews with indigenous filmmakers, the VNA¿s staff, the filmed subjects, concepts from the anthropological cinema and documentary film theories etc.) elements of the documentaries. It also underscores the ethical, aesthetical and political dimension of VNA¿s nonfiction audiovisual production. These three dimensions of the filmic discourse are seen as fundamental for a better comprehension of the autoethnographic documentary ¿ a category which is not only a concept from the postcolonial studies, but also a way through which cinema takes a stance and reflects on the production of indigenous filmmakers. The analysis of VNA¿s autoethnographic documentaries reveals: a filmmaking process (preparation, filmmaking and montage) in which authorship is shared and the ethics an element present in all these steps; the employment and modulation of different aesthetic gestures, a strong influence from the direct cinema/cinéma vérité, alongside issues that emerge with force in the contemporary nonfiction audiovisual production, such as the staging and the use of archival footage; the political role played by the documentaries, since they are addressed to the non-indigenous public in order to discuss the relation between official and unofficial history, indigenous identity and culture, or even to denounce, claim and give visibility to indigenous peoples / Doutorado / Multimeios / Doutor em Multimeios