Cutting real : self-reflexive editing devices in a selection of contemporary South African documentary films

[摘要] ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Since John Grierson first coined the term 'documentary film in the 1920s, there hasbeen a debate about the objectivity or subjectivity of the filmmaker. Some theoreticiansbelieve that a documentary filmmaker may not interact subjectively with her subject.Contemporary perspectives lean towards acknowledging the subjectivity of thefilmmaker, and accept that subjectivity is intrinsic to the making of a documentary film.Some would even argue that it is precisely the subjectivity of the filmmaker – themeeting of an individual, subjective perspective with the pro-filmic world – that makes aparticular film unique.Brecht believed that the structure of a theatre piece could be used to counter theaudience's uncritical emotional engagement and identification with the content of thework. This Verfremdungseffekt enables the audience to engage intellectually with thework. The audience does not get lost in the content of the piece, but rather views itfrom a critical distance. Brecht believed that this distantiation does not excludeentertainment, but that the audience would be able to enjoy the production whileviewing it from a critical, intellectual distance.The self-reflexive mode of representation is identified by Nichols as one of the primaryways for a filmmaker to engage with her subject. Self-reflexivity entails the inclusion ofcues within the film reminding the viewer that it is, indeed, a film. The motivation forthis is to make the audience aware of the constructed nature of the film, therebyacknowledging the subjectivity of the filmmaker.The most overt form of self-reflexivity in documentary films is the inclusion of thedirector in the film. The focus of this study is, however, more specifically on howediting devices can be used to foreground the construction of a film. Structural analysisof a selection of recent South African documentary films is undertaken as part of thisstudy. The result of this in-depth analysis is a list of twenty-eight conspicuous, selfreflexiveediting devices used in these films.To test the effect of self-reflexive editing devices, I purposely incorporated them intothe construction of a documentary series, Booza TV, of which I was one of the editors.The goal of Booza TV is to change viewers' perceptions of alcohol and alcohol abuse.Both quantitative and qualitative research results pointed to the ability of the series toachieve this goal. The perception change, however, is not the focus of this study.Instead, findings specifically related to the viewer's experience of the editing of theproduction are analysed. These findings show that viewers do notice self-reflexivedevices, that the devices can contribute to their enjoyment of the production and thatself-reflexive devices are able to communicate subtext to the audience. The conclusionis drawn from the research conducted in this study that the potential of a documentaryfilm to change viewers' perceptions is as dependent on the way the film has beenconstructed as it is on the content of the film.

[发布机构] Stellenbosch University