Answer 4 questions Documentary crumb

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Answer the following questions with as much detail as possible, illustrated by examples from readings, class discussion and student film presentations. 1) Describe four different modes of documentary and place them into both historical and technological context. Why did these different forms of documentaries arise when they did? What were some of the factors and conditions that either led to their continued popularity or their demise? 2) It has been postulated that the documentary tradition has depended upon both truth-telling and tangible documents. Select two films presented in class by student groups and describe what form of documentation or evidence the films “truth-claim” was based upon. 3) Select two films that student groups presented in class and compare and contrast them. Note varying means of authenticity, mode of presentation, style, and other differences or similarities. 4) Why would some documentary makers choose to use a poetic or experimental approach as opposed to a more traditional approach? What are some of the advantages or disadvantages of such an approach? What are some the characteristics of a poetic or experimental approach? What would be some examples of a poetic or experimental documentary? “Harlan County USA” (1976) By Barbara Kopple Content • • • • In 1972, Kopple came to a coal mine of Duke Power company located in Harlan County to record the United Mine Workers of America (UMWA) strike against the Eastover Coal Company’s Brookside Mine and Prep Plant. The helpless, yet tough miners and their families Unscrupulous capitalists, management, and thugs. The government was in collusion with the capitalists (1969: the election of the National Federation of Miners ballot), but the chairman of the old trade union colluded with the capital class, so they ended up killing the candidate who supported the working class, Joseph Yablonski.) Editing/Framing • • • Musical Component: All original music sung by the union picketers/organizers. o Which Side Are You On? By Florence Reece, a social activist in the film Dominant female voice to represent wider themes Close ups of shots • Narrative using the drama techniques History • Produced and directed by Barbara Kopple with associate director Anne Lewis, cinematography done by Kevin Keating and Hart Perry with several camera operators • Kopple initially went to Harlan from New York with $9000 to fund her documentary, but she eventually wound up $60,000 in debt • Framed around Harlan County also known as “Bloody Harlan” due to a strike in 1931 where one miner and three deputies were shot dead • Film was originally intended to focus on campaign against UMWA (United Mine Workers) president Tony Boyle by Arnold Miller • • • • • Events in Harlan against Duke Power were a side story in the film, but the director decided to change subjects as the strikes became violent Desired new contract allowing miners to unionize under the UMWA; it was agreed upon after the death of Lawrence Jones by a mine supervisor Group of about 50 miners’ wives led picketing charge Duke Power arranged for prisoners from Kentucky jail to be work released to guard “scab” workers Kopple spent over a year living with these people, and as a result, they became comfortable with her filming them and their strike so closely Genre/ Stylistic Choices • • • Kopple used various styles to produce the documentary. There were mostly hints of observation and cinema vérité as much of the film involved filming the subjects and their interactions. Of course, there were various interviews conducted throughout the film (though without Kopple’s voice), and some found footage and newsreels were used, but generally, the audience experiences the film by way of the citizens of Harlan talking about the strike and their resultant struggles. The documentary voice felt rather indirect embodied. While there were occasional interviews, most of the film involved vérité style footage, found footage, and all narration and exposition explained by the subjects (or sometimes even the songs) of each respective clip. The film has hints of both judicial and commemorative rhetoric. Not only does Kopple want to explain the miners’ strike, but she wants the viewers to examine the lives of certain impacted individuals. In a way, they go hand in hand as this better understanding of the physical and financial toll of the coal miners strike provides relevant background information regarding events that occurred before the strike commenced. Reception/Fallout of Film • • • Won numerous awards including an Academy Award for Best Documentary in 1977, LA Film Critics Association Special Award, and Belgian Film Critics Association: Grand Prix. A UK magazine, Sight and Sound, created a list of the “Greatest Documentaries of All Time” and placed “Harlan County USA” as 24th. Library of Congress entered the film into The U.S. National Film Registry in 1989 Critics such as Roger Ebert gave high praise as "The film retains all of its power.” Overall Thoughts • • • Kopple’s dedication to documenting Harlan’s story accurately is apparent as her efforts were subsequently applauded and awarded Due to the minimal interference of the subjects and historical context of the miner strike, Kopple’s documentary appears to ring true One could argue the ethics of living amongst people in grief stricken areas to film their lives for “entertainment” and how that may be a form of slumming. However, if that footage is used to educate the population about an unfair situation and how the perseverance of the strikers got them through their hardships, the project seems more beneficial than not. Documentary 1 Title: Crumb Director: Terry Zwigoff Group members: Synopsis: (brief statement of what the film is about) Directed by Terry Zwigoff, Crumb is about the life of underground cartoonist Robert Crumb, and his provocative, sexual, and violent, satire of contemporary american culture. Crumb is widely regarded as the most famous and influential comics artist of the 1960’s. This is the story of a man, and his two brothers, raised by an amphetamine addicted mother, and sadistic father. We learn about all the strategies that Crumb developed to make sense of his twisted view of humanity, and eventually gain success. And how he turned to art as an outlet for all his disturbing thoughts. Genre: (Subject, Category, etc.) The genre of the documentary is Biographical, which shows both Robert Crumb’s work and personal life. The documentary emphasises on Crumb’s personal life and some of the problems he has with society, because that is what inspires his impressive work. History: (Length of time to make, approx cost, anecdotes, etc) The film was directed by Terry Zwigoff, who met and became acquainted with Robert Crumb through their shared interest in the same type of music. It took Zwigoff nine years to make the film from 1985-1994, and during that time, he thought about killing himself due to poor living conditions. There was even a false rumor that he threatened to shoot himself if Crumb didn’t agree to make the film. The film’s budget was $300,000 and earned $3.1 million. Originally, the film was supposed to be centered mainly around Robert, the most successful cartoonist in the Crumb family, but since his brothers, Charles and Maxon, also had important stories of their own, the film was titled “Crumb” to represent all three brothers. Before the film could be released, the eldest brother, Charles, committed suicide as he had been battling depression throughout the filming. The film won several major documentary awards, although it wasn’t nominated for an Oscar. Components in the film: (interviews, archival, graphics, music, B-roll, etc) The film’s has a lot of loose camera work that follows the main character Robert Crumb, which is a typical component for cinema verite style. There is a lot of archival components in the film when Zwigoff shows old pictures of Robert’s family and also some of his early work. Music is mainly included during the parts of the film where Crumb’s work is shown, and typically for every movie at the beginning and in the end. There are interviews in the film but they are not interactive. There are a many parts where B-roll is used, mainly when Crumb’s work is being explained. The film is based of Robert Crumb’s personal story, which portrays and brings out variety of different emotions in the viewer. Technical Considerations: The film uses close-up shots alternating between Crumb’s work and people’s responses to depict emotion. The film is made through the eyes of two artist, both Terry and Robert (Crumb) are responsible for giving the film the edge it produces. Terry’s ability to let Crumb dictate the narrative is powerful as it allows for organic interactions between Robert and his brother Charles and other family members. Zwigoff major contribution may be his ability to get Robert to do the documentary and allowing the camera to roll, documenting more than he could have expected from aspects of his family life and personal beliefs. Structure and style: What POV, truth-telling approach, rhetorical devices, mode etc, does the filmmaker adopt. Even though the film contains interviews, Zwigoff removes himself completely from the film, making it a more observational mode. Zwigoff incorporated himself within the film, including a lot about Charles and his medications both as a dedication to him and because of Zwigoff’s own suicidal struggle. Thus, he emphasizes the stories from all of the Crumb family where they struggled during their lives. He does not avoid any of the moral and political issues from Robert’s comics, providing a better connection with the audience. As one of the brothers are telling a story, he includes either comics or family pictures that illustrate the story. Zwigoff begins the film with why Robert makes comics and what he is most known for, and ends it with him moving off to Paris following the 6 years. Overall analysis: Does it work? Does the film ring true? Are there ethical problems? The documentary works successfully as it introduces the audience the life of Robert Crumb from childhood to the artist he is right now. The film guides the audience from different level to understand the strategies that have kept Crumb alive and made him successful. The film rings true because of one fact that the director Terry Zwigoff had known Crumb well for while. Movies like this do not usually get made because the people who have lives like this usually are not willing to reveal them. However, since Zwigoff known Crumb very well, he directed the film convinced there are no secrets hid in Crumb’s family. What is the message of the film? Nothing accidental behind the creation of great art and Robert Crumb is a great artist. What five minute clip will you use? We’re using the clip where Robert Crumb talks about the struggles he faced growing up and how that directly influenced his cartoons.
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Documentaries
Modes of Documentary
Poetic documentaries were first seen in the 1920s. As the name sounds, poetic documentaries
focus on experiences, images, and portraying the world through a different set of eyes. As such,
they are abstract and use loose narratives. They aim to present a feeling rather than truth.
Therefore, poetic documentaries are mainly involved in entertaining or evoking a directed
reception and reaction from the audience. These documentaries have since phased out due to the
demand for documentaries to provide truths and document evidence as opposed to entertainment.
On the other hand, expository documentaries are the conventional documentaries
considered by many people. They are sharply contrasted from poetic documentaries by the fact
that they tend to present truths. They use the narration of an omnipresent “voice of God” to put
the information in context. These documentaries mainly came into the market in the 1980s when
filming was increasingly used to determine truths about various occurrences (Nichols 601). The
main technological advancement was the ability to add commentaries, and this is used to date
and still prevails as the most common documentary mode.
Another mode of documentaries is the observational mode. First and foremost, as
opposed to expository, observational mode gives a chance to all sides of a documented story to
be heard through the ab...


Anonymous
Excellent resource! Really helped me get the gist of things.

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