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The Visual Communication of Environmental Awareness Issues in Jeff Orlowski’S, Chasing Ice (2012) and Yann Arthus-Bertrand’S, Home (2009)

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The Visual Communication of Environmental Awareness Issues in Jeff Orlowski’S, Chasing Ice (2012) and Yann Arthus-Bertrand’S, Home (2009) THE VISUAL COMMUNICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS ISSUES IN JEFF ORLOWSKI’S, CHASING ICE (2012) AND YANN ARTHUS-BERTRAND’S, HOME (2009) N.E. VAN DER WALT 2018 THE VISUAL COMMUNICATION OF ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS ISSUES IN JEFF ORLOWSKI’S, CHASING ICE (2012) AND YANN ARTHUS-BERTRAND’S, HOME (2009) BY NADIA VAN DER WALT Submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree, Magister Technologiae: Photography, in the Department of Visual Arts, School of Music, Art and Design, Faculty of Arts, Nelson Mandela University APRIL 2018 SUPERVISOR: Dr Heidi Saayman Hattingh (D Tech) CO-SUPERVISOR: Mr Glenn Meyer (M.A) COLLABORATOR: Prof Maarten De Wit DECLARATION I, Nadia Elize van der Walt 211105023, hereby declare that the dissertation for the degree, Magister Technologiae in Photography, is my own work, except where otherwise stated, and that it has not previously been submitted for assessment or completion of any postgraduate qualification to another University or for another qualification. Sources are acknowledged by giving explicit references. A reference list is appended. Nadia van der Walt Date: 14 March 2018 Official use: In accordance with Rule G5.6.3, 5.6.3 A dissertation must be accompanied by a written declaration on the part of the candidate to the effect that it is her own work and that it has not previously been submitted for assessment to another University or for another qualification. However, material from publications by the candidate may be embodied in a dissertation. i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I would like to thank my supervisors, Dr Heidi Saayman Hattingh and Mr Glenn Meyer for their assistance and dedication to this study. Furthermore, thanks to the Faculty of Arts at the Nelson Mandela University for the support offered, with special mention to Mr David Jones, Mr Bruce Cadle, Mrs Amanda Snyman and Ms Hermolene Adams for their advice and words of encouragement. Thank you to the Nelson Mandela University Postgraduate Research Scholarship (PGRS) and the Africa Earth Observatory Network (AEON) for financial assistance. Thank you to Prof Maarten de Wit and Prof Moctar Doucouré for giving me the opportunity to be a part of the AEON team and the imperative Karoo Shale Gas Baseline Research Programme. Thank you to members of the AEON team who were always willing to include me in their projects. I would like to extend my sincere appreciation to my family and friends for their support and encouragement during this study, especially my parents, Johan and Desma van der Walt, and my sisters, Kara Delport and Mieke van der Walt. ii ABSTRACT This study presents an investigation into the visual communication complexities within the genre of documentary film, specifically aimed at the development of a set of criteria of cinematic techniques for the visual communication of environmental awareness issues. This process utilises a theoretical approach to understanding the development and communicative possibilities of documentary film, as well as an analytical interpretation structured on semiotic film theory. The theoretical investigation reveals Bill Nichols’ (2010) documentary modes as an established analytical model. This study engages with four of Nichols’ six modes – namely, the poetic, the expository, the observational and the participatory modes, as the criteria for the extraction of scenes and/or images from Chasing Ice (2012) by Jeff Orlowski and Home (2009) by Yann Arthus-Bertrand. Once Nichols’ modes have been identified, a semiotic reading is conducted. Gillian Rose’s (2016) visual analysis framework underpinned by Pieter J. Fourie’s (1988) semiological approach to film analysis, is utilised to read the selected film texts. A comparative analysis of Chasing Ice (2012) and Home (2009) reveals that the inclusion of different and multiple modes constructs the visualisation of environmental awareness issues in the documentary film genre. The cinematic techniques specific to the documentary modes represented in Chasing Ice (2012) and Home (2009) are appropriated in the construction of three film shorts within the researcher’s documentary film study, Karoo (2017). This combination of theory and practice yields the researcher a considered and informed approach to constructing documentary imagery aimed at visualising the current environment of the Karoo Basin prior to the possibility of shale gas exploration and/or exploitation. Keywords: Cinematic techniques, Chasing Ice (2012), Home (2009), Bill Nichols, Nichols’ documentary modes, semiotics, documentary film, environmental documentary film, environmental awareness, visual communication iii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES vii LIST OF TABLES ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS xi LIST OF DEFINITIONS xii CHAPTER 1 | INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 BACKGROUND AND CONTEXTUALISATION 1 1.2 THE AIMS AND THE OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY 4 1.3 THE AIM OF THE PRACTICAL COMPONENT 4 1.4 THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY 6 1.5 METHODOLOGICAL APPROACH AND CHAPTER DIVISION 7 CHAPTER 2 | CONTEXTUALISATION OF DOCUMENTARY FILM 9 2.1 INTRODUCTION 9 2.2 THE DEVELOPMENT OF DOCUMENTARY FILM 9 2.2.1 The Birth of Cinema 9 2.2.2 Documentary Film 12 2.3 CHAPTER SUMMARY 29 CHAPTER 3 | FILM ANALYSIS METHODOLOGY 31 3.1 INTRODUCTION 31 3.2 BILL NICHOLS’S ANALYTICAL MODEL 32 3.2.1 The Poetic Mode 32 3.2.2 The Expository Mode 33 iv 3.2.3 The Observational Mode 34 3.2.4 The Participatory Mode 34 3.3 FILM THEORY 36 3.4 THE SEMIOLOGICAL APPROACH 37 3.5 PROPOSED FRAMEWORK 43 3.6 CHAPTER SUMMARY 47 CHAPTER 4 | ANALYSIS OF CHASING ICE (2012) AND HOME (2009) 48 4.1 INTRODUCTION 48 4.2 CHASING ICE (2012) 49 4.2.1 The Poetic Mode in Chasing Ice (2012) 51 4.2.2 The Observational Mode in Chasing Ice (2012) 62 4.2.3 The Participatory Mode in Chasing Ice (2012) 67 4.3 HOME (2009) 74 4.3.1 The Poetic Mode in Home (2009) 77 4.3.2 The Expository Mode in Home (2009) 84 4.3.3 The Observational Mode in Home (2009) 90 4.4 CHAPTER SUMMARY 94 CHAPTER 5 | ANALYSIS OF KAROO (2017) 95 5.1 INTRODUCTION 95 5.2 SYNTHESIS OF CHASING ICE (2012) AND HOME (2009) 95 5.3 PRACTICAL METHOD 98 5.4 INTRODUCTION TO THE KAROO 99 v 5.5 GROUNDWATER MONITORING 109 5.6 SURFACE MONITORING 116 5.7 CHAPTER SUMMARY 121 CHAPTER 6 | CONCLUSION 123 6.1 SUMMARY OF PRECEDING CHAPTERS 123 6.2 CONTRIBUTION OF THE STUDY 127 6.3 SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH 128 6.4 CLOSING COMMENTS 128 REFERENCE LIST 130 ADDENDA 137 ADDENDUM A: REC-H Approval Letter [H16-ART-AD-001] 137 ADDENDUM B: Some Specific Qualities of Documentary Modes 138 (adapted from Nichols, 2010: Table 7.1.) ADDENDUM C: Mandela Talks: Ocean Sciences (2017) 139 by Nadia van der Walt ADDENDUM D: Seismic Mapping 148 by Nadia van der Walt ADDENDUM E: UAV Monitoring 150 by Nadia van der Walt vi LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1: Horizontal Drilling and Hydraulic Fracturing (Schmidt, 2008) 5 Figure 2.1: The Lumière Cinématographe in operation, c. 1895 (Cook, 2004:1.13) 11 Figure 2.2: Concept of Environment: air, water, land, living organisms and materials 27 surrounding us and their interactions together constitute environment (Kaushik & Kaushik, 2007: Fig. 1.1) Figure 3.1: The Sites and Modalities for Interpreting Visual Materials 44 (Rose, 2016: Figure 2.1) Figure 4.1: Archival footage in Chasing Ice (2012) (Chasing Ice, 2012) 50 Figure 4.2: James Balog in Chasing Ice (2012) (Chasing Ice, 2012) 50 Figure 4.3: Observational Scene One (Chasing Ice, 2012) 64 Figure 4.4: Observational Scene Three (Chasing Ice, 2012) 66 Figure 4.5: Observational Scene Four (Chasing Ice, 2012) 67 Figure 4.6: Participatory Scene One (Chasing Ice, 2012) 69 Figure 4.7: Participatory Scene Two (Chasing Ice, 2012) 70 Figure 4.8: Participatory Scene Three (Chasing Ice, 2012) 71 Figure 4.9: Participatory Scene Four (Chasing Ice, 2012) 72 Figure 4.10: Opening Scene in Home (2009) (Home, 2009) 74 Figure 4.11: Ol Doinyo Lengai volcano (Arthus-Bertrand, 2015) 75 Figure 4.12: Lakagigar volcanic system, Iceland (64°07’N - 18°14’W) 75 (Arthus-Bertrand, 2015) Figure 4.13: Tungnaa River, north-east of Landmannalaugar 76 (Arthus-Bertrand, 2015) Figure 4.14: Lagos, Nigeria (Home, 2009) 76 vii Figure 4.15: Observational Scene Two (Home, 2009) 94 Figure 5.1: Nyaradzo Dhliwayo in Groundwater Monitoring (Karoo, 2017) 113 Figure 5.2: Divan Stroebel in Groundwater Monitoring (Karoo, 2017) 113 Figure 5.3: Sive Mngcele in Surface Monitoring (Karoo, 2017) 118 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 4.1: Examples in Chasing Ice (2012) identified as poetic mode categories 52 Table 4.2: Poetic Scene One in Chasing Ice (2012) 53 Table 4.3: Poetic Scene Two in Chasing Ice (2012) 56 Table 4.4: Poetic Scene Three in Chasing Ice (2012) 57 Table 4.5: Poetic Scene Four in Chasing Ice (2012) 60 Table 4.6: Poetic Scene Five in Chasing Ice (2012) 61 Table 4.7: Examples in Chasing Ice (2012) identified as observational mode 62 categories Table 4.8: Observational Scene Two in Chasing Ice (2012) 65 Table 4.9: Examples in Chasing Ice (2012) identified as participatory mode 68 categories Table 4.10: Examples in Home (2009) identified as poetic mode categories 78 Table 4.11: Poetic Scene One in Home (2009) 79 Table 4.12: Poetic Scene Two in Home (2009) 80 Table 4.13: Poetic Scene Three in Home (2009) 81 Table 4.14: Poetic Scene(s) Four in Home (2009) 83 Table 4.15: Examples in Home (2009) identified as expository mode 84 categories Table 4.16: Expository Scene One in Home (2009) 86 Table 4.17: Expository Scene Two in Home (2009) 88 Table 4.18: Expository Scene Three in Home (2009) 88 Table 4.19: Examples in Home (2009) identified as observational mode 90 categories ix Table 4.20: Observational Scene One
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