Week 1: Lifestyle Documentary and Reality TV
Tonight was the first class of the documentary course that I’m taking at City Lit. I find that first classes always have a really interesting dynamic to them: people tend to be initially nervous and apprehensive but as soon as group discussions start, a sort of realisation that everybody has similar interests starts to filter through the room. That’s a great moment. It also became apparent that if this class is at all representative, then 75% of the worlds documentary makers are female.
In this first session we looked at the role of the documentary in defining who we are and how we live, how rather than being a window on the world, the documentary in many ways acts more like a mirror, reflecting various viewpoints back at us. We watched extracts from 2 documentaries:
The first was 49 Up directed by Michael Apted, the latest installment of the Up! Series. Started in 1964, the series follows 14 seven year old children as they get older (revisiting them every 7 years) and explores the notion of class. In order to give a feeling of coherence throughout the series which spans many decades, the style is rather conservative. It focuses on personal lives and the subjects tend to fit certain stereotypes. One wonders how much of an influence the documentary itself has had on the people it follows and indeed whether it has simply helped to lead them down the paths set out by their class. Nevertheless a very interesting series which is ongoing and who’s next installment will coincide with the London Olympics in 2012.
The second documentary by Nicholas Barker, Unmade Bed, is set in New York and follows four heterosexual singles. In contrast to the UP series, this is very stylised can be described as a hybrid documentary / film, the director having asked the subjects to replay themselves under his direction in certain parts. Very beautiful shots of New York in a wide aspect ratio, combined with interesting choices of music and a complete absence of voiceover give this a real cinematic look. In a way the subject matter and also the portrayal of the people give this a black comedy feel to it which can leave you with a certain voyeuristic taste in your mouth. Although it did at first seem a bit strange, I really liked the idea of a hybrid as it helped to push the boundaries of what you think a documentary is. I like looking at things in new ways.
Very much looking forward to next weeks installment which will be looking at the categorisation of documentaries. I’ve also arranged to exchange a list of my favorite documentaries with several of the people I met. That sounds like a job for the opml editor. I love Dave Winer’s idea for reading lists…but what I want is a watching list!