NAVIGATING a THEORETICAL MODEL for ANIMATED DOCUMENTARY PRACTICE ALEX WIDDOWSON Abstract

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF FILM AND MEDIA ARTS Vol. 3, Nº. 1

ANIMATING DOCUMENTARY MODES: NAVIGATING A THEORETICAL MODEL FOR ANIMATED DOCUMENTARY PRACTICE ALEX WIDDOWSON Abstract

ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART, UNITED KINGDOM Music & Clowns is an animated documentary that intimately portrays the subjectivity and relationships between my brother, our parents, and myself. This film will function as a case study to facilitate a reflective exploration and practice-informed analysis of some of the theoretical frameworks relevant to animated documentary discourse. Placing emphasis on Bill Nichols’ modes of documentary, I trace the influences, interactions, and specific application that this theoretical topology has had on Music & Clowns. Expanding upon Nichols’ framework by way of visual metaphors, I develop increasing- ly sophisticated models of the interactions between practice and theory, maintaining Nichols’ topology to integrate live-action and animated documentary traditions.

Keywords: Bill Nichols, documentary modes, animated documentary, theory, practice.

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Introduction focused on the stories of people with observe Jamie’s unique personality, Down syndrome who are high function- quality of life, and the influence his pres- Music & Clowns is an animated docu- ing. Fischer argued that Phillips’ thesis ence has had on my parents and I. mentary containing a rich portrait of was informed by a relatively privileged someone with Down syndrome. This experience of raising a high function- Despite Jamie’s extremely limited ver- film was conceived as a response to the ing child with Down syndrome. Despite bal communication, Music & Clowns polemic documentary, A World Without Phillips’ son being representative of just attempts to demonstrate how funny, Down Syndrome (Richards, 2016), pre- a small fraction of the UK’s population charming, and perceptive he is. The sented by Sally Phillips, which address- of people with Down syndrome, she film is structured around a series of es the introduction of Non-invasive built an argument for the potential of interviews I conducted with mine and Prenatal Testing (NIPT) to the United the entire community to make societal Jamie’s mother (Anna) and father (Da- Kingdom (UK), and the likelihood that contributions comparable to those with- vid). Topics discussed, relevant to the it will decrease the birth rate of people out the diagnosis. In response to the political subtext, include how they both with Down syndrome. In the UK, prior to dialogue between Phillips and Fisher I felt when first hearing of his diagnosis, the introduction of NIPT testing, 90% of chose to create a film that placed em- as well as the impact of their decision to fetuses diagnosed with Down syndrome phasis away from the abortion debate, eventually move Jamie out of the fam- were aborted. In Iceland, after NIPT test- instead developing a film which tackles ily home into one run by carers. Anna, ing was introduced, the abortion rate the under-representation of the ordinary who was not provided with a prenatal rose to 100% (“Sally Phillips’s film on...”, lives of people with Down syndrome. diagnosis, does not express a position 2016, para. 7-8). This film provides qualitative evidence, on the debate surrounding diagnosis in- which will hopefully demonstrate to formed abortions. In contrast, David al- It could be argued that the significant audiences my brother Jamie’s human ludes to his pro-life perspective. During drop in the birth rate of people with worth, irrespective of his profound lim- the editing process his politicised opin- Down syndrome fits Rob Nixon’s carac- itations or capacity for proactive contri- ions were selected based on their rele- terisation of “slow violence”, a process butions to wider society. vance to his informed perspective and or destruction that is gradual and often rejected where it was possible to infer invisible (Carruth, 2013, p. 847). Jane Suzanne Buchan proposed that polit- overt judgment regarding the choices Fisher, director of the support organi- ically motivated animated documen- made by others. sation, Antenatal Results and Choices, taries can be characterised as an “en- argues that these tests simply provide counter”, evoking for the viewer a sense I also conducted interviews with Jamie. pregnant women with more accurate of being “...“present” and/or involved in It felt necessary to grant him an active information. Phillips was criticised by the subject matter and people depict- role in the documentary and offer him Fischer for occupying an overtly pro-life ed” (2014, p. 252). Music & Clowns has an opportunity to provide consent. The position, attempting to directly influ- the potential to present viewers with an ethics of creating a film about someone ence the choices of pregnant women encounter with my family, positioning who is not legally able to offer informed who are likely to give birth to a baby with them in our home, immersed in our in- consent was a significant concern. In Down syndrome (McVeigh, 2016, para. terpersonal dynamics. This film con- response to asking Jamie if he felt com- 5). It was also problematic that Phillips tains within it curated opportunities to fortable with me making a film about

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him, he laughed and kissed the micro- making a joke in the former interview or the final outcome would be significantly phone (figure 1). While it is tempting observed my response, prompting a re- different. to infer consent from this act, I cannot enactment. assume he understands the difference Music & Clowns addresses several eth- between a private screening of the Upon completion, I observed Jamie’s ical ambiguities, arguing for the social film and its wide distribution, and thus response to the film. He engaged en- value of the life of someone who can’t may not be able to forsee the potential thusiastically with elements of the work, care for themself, referencing Jamie’s impact of the film’s release on his life. particularly those featuring clowns or limited ability to explain whether or In accordance with the Royal College music, and was able to recognise family not he is offering consent, deciphering of Art’s ethical procedures, David and members. However, his attempts to ar- obscured mental processes based on Anna provided consent on Jamie’s be- ticulate his recognition or approval were observation, questioning the legitimacy half. In a later interview, without prompt, cut short, possibly because the fast ed- of each family members interpretation Jamie kissed the microphone once iting and dynamic animation may have of his cognition, and challenging view- again. I interpreted this repetition as a been difficult for him to process. I do not ers to trust documentary value of a signifier of his intuitive comprehension consider this a flaw in the project as he non-indexical method of representation of the comedic value associated with is not the intended audience. If he were, to illustrate informed qualitative obser- unanticipated subversion. He was either vations. In order to encourage critical

Figure 1: Jamie kissing the microphone. Screenshots from Music & Clowns, Author, 2018

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engagement with the form and subject with form imply additional affiliations the foundation of documentary theory. matter, the film possesses numerous with both the observational and poetic Annabelle Honess Roe argues this is reflexive devices. However, the multiple mode. This complex medley of modal partly due to a flexibility associated with strategies employed in this film prevent interactions has prompted my reeval- epistemological “broadness” (2011, p. it from being categorized in Bill Nichols’ uation of the relationships between 216). Bill Nichols’ proposed modes of reflexive mode. My choice to animate animated and live action documentary documentary create six subdivisions the presence of microphones in some practice, and the theoretical discourses akin to sub-genres in his book, Intro- scenes replicates and contrives a trope relating animation to Nichols’ topology duction to Documentary (2001, p. 99, 1st of the participatory mode. Interspersed of documentary. ed.). His topology was composed of the between conventionally structured par- “poetic mode”, which places emphasis ticipatory scenes, structured around Developing visual metaphors on aesthetics rather than a subject; indexical testimony, are sequences to plot Nichols’ theoretical the “expository mode”, which presents that exemplify Bill Nichols’ performa- framework of documentary a linear authoritative perspective; the tive mode, in which the subjectivity of “observational mode”, documenting a a participant is evoked. In addition to John Grierson’s pithy definition of doc- subject naturalistically; the “participa- this, the use of observational archive umentary as “the creative treatment of tory mode”; focusing on the relationship footage and the playful experimentation actuality” (1933, p. 8) has endured as between the filmmaker and subject; the

Figure 2: Bill Nichols erecting the modes of documentary practice on top of John Grierson’s foundational definition, Author, 2018

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“reflexive mode”, focusing on the rela- context because it functions as “meta- subject and filmmaker to facilitate rep- tionship between the filmmaker and the commentary” by way of artistically in- resentational authenticity through feed- audience; and the “performative mode”, terpreting conventional documentary back (Ward, 2005 p 94-95).1 attempting to represent subjective sources. Gunnar Strøm undermines knowledge (2001, p. 125 & 138, 1st ed.). the idea that animated documentary Honess Roe was critical of attempts to Collectively the modes appear, at first is a subdivision of the reflexive mode “shoehorn” animated documentary into glance, to be a method for dividing the by illuminating the culturally informed Nichols’ modes, which were conceived spectrum of documentary productions audience’s preconceived limitations on with live action documentary in mind. into distinct camps. This evoked for me the practice. Non-fiction publications Instead she establishes a framework an image of six pillars standing tall upon demonstrate that the written word, de- specific to animation based on how Grierson’s enduring foundation. Nichols’ void of indexical mechanics, evidences the medium functions differently from rough chronology of the advent of each the potential for animation to be capable live action in a documentary context mode (2001, 138) could inform an ex- of representing fiction and reality (2003, (2011, p. 225). These included: “mimetic tension of this metaphor indicating both p. 52). This argument trivialises Del- substitution”, in which live action docu- the order and manner in which Nichols Gaudio’s reflexive characterisation. mentary footage is imitated due to the arranged the theoretical columns. The absence of a camera or be impossibility allegorical act of erecting individual Strøm instead points to Nichols’ per- of capturing events on film; “non-mi- columns could represent the linear pro- formative mode due to the emphasis it metic substitution”, where footage is gression implied by Nichols’ table of places on subject specific strategies of replaced with illustrative or figurative documentary modes (2001, 138). representation (2003, p. 53). Eric Patrick imagery unbound by conventional doc- supports this categorisation, however, umentary aesthetics; and “evocation”, Annabelle Honess Roe reviews early ap- his argument shares similarities with which describes the use of animation proaches to building a theoretical frame- both Strøm and DelGaudio by adding to represent abstract and subjective work for animated documentary (2011, that “...the very nature of animation is to concepts such as emotions, sensations, p. 223). These theoretical strategies an- foreground its process and artifice” (as and mind-sets. (2011, pp. 225-227). chored the discipline to individual modes cited in Honess Roe, 2013, 18). Anima- of documentary practice proposed by tion is therefore performative, evoking Nichols is also dismissive of attempts Nichols. Contextualising animated doc- subjective of subject and animatore, by to segregate individual films into any umentary in this way further atomized way of a reflexive device. one category, preferring a “mix and his framework. The resultant discourse match” approach (2001, 34). He avoid- became preoccupied by conflicting opin- Paul Ward, in contrast, considers the re- ed categorising animated documenta- ions regarding which of the modes pos- lationship between a documentarian an- ry into any particular mode. While not sessed animated documentary as a con- imator and their subject demonstrates mentioned in the first edition of an In- stituent. Sybil DelGaudio (1997, p. 192), a participatory or “interactive” tendency troduction to Documentary (2001), in the while referencing an earlier publication within the discipline. Like Patrick, Ward second edition (2010) he grounds vari- by Nichols featuring just five modes focuses on the interpretation of testi- ous animated documentaries into two (1991, p. 56), argued that animation was mony as animation, instead emphasiz- separate modes, while highlighting the inherently reflexive in a documentary ing the potential for dialogue between overarching relevance of a third.

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Characterised by the modernist ten- the former, the intertitles represent the account for animation’s time consum- dency towards artistic interpretation, U.S. government’s propagandist mo- ing nature, and thus these productions an emphasis on form and overthrowing tivations, and in the later a voice-over have a slower means of propulsion. conventions, Nichols references Silence matches the contentions of natural his- Live action, which often involves larger (Bringas & Yadin, 1998) and Feeling My tory documentaries, linking both exam- crews for a shorter period of time, can Way (Hodgson, 1997) as exemplars of ples to the expository mode. be represented by larger, faster shuttles. the poetic mode in which the artist’s Educational or industry training may vision is foregrounded (2010, p.164). With Nichols’ “mix and match” approach be equivalent to a starting position or Nichols points to the stylized reenact- in mind, my previously proposed archi- resting place. I imagine two distinct sta- ments and metaphorical signifiers in tectural metaphor now appears to be tions orbiting the documentary sun, one Waltz With Bashir (Folman, 2008), Ryan superficial and inadequate. In its place which services animation shuttles, the (Landreth, 2004), and His Mother’s Voice I envisage a more complex gravitational other larger live action ships. (Tupicoff, 1997), attributing them to the system model, akin to a solar system, performative mode (2010, 204). Further- which may elucidate the interactions The movement of the modes, in their or- more, Nichols highlights the use of ani- between the genre, modes of practice, bit of the genre, may roughly character- mation in documentaries as inherently and individual films. ise the shifts in trends throughout doc- reflexive. For at least some audience umentary history. Live action expository members animation prompts them to Each mode, with its own gravitation- films, for instance, gradually rose and “question the assumption that a docu- al field, orbits the documentary genre. fell in prominence during the 20th Cen- mentary must support its proposals or In this model an individual film moves tury. This tendency can be represented perspective with historically authentic through the figurative solar system, ini- by the relative proximity of the two or- footage” (2010, p. 33). tially guided by the directors intentions. biting bodies at any given time. Tracking The production’s progress is influenced the 100 years would show the modes Despite his efforts to accommodate by a number of gravitational fields in gradually rotating clockwise around the animated documentary in the second varying strengths, shaping the film’s tra- genera, before reaching their current po- edition, Nichols has overlooked a signif- jectory. Some will arrange themselves sition represented in figure 3. icant portion of the discipline. The films like satellites, in tight orbits of a single he cited are certainly exemplars of the mode, others will form a complex series Navigating documentary animated documentary cannon, howev- of arcs as they travel between modes, modes though animated er, Honess Roe, proposed a modal dis- through the system. documentary practice tinction between the films Nichols discussed and what she describes in her When extending the metaphor to ac- Case study 1: Jamie’s aspiration to be own topology as examples of mimetic count for the difference between ani- a clown vs. his appreciation of clowns. substitution. The Sinking of the Lusitania mated and live action documentaries, Facilitating and visualising verbal meta- (McCay, 2018) and the series Walking one can observe that the two disciplines commentary to further distinguish con- With Dinosaurs (BBC, 1999) use anima- tend to be drawn to particular modes, trasting perspectives, manifested in the tion to replace absent or what would and offer distinct qualities. Comparing performative mode. be impossible footage (2011, p.226). In the medium to a vehicle, allows us to

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Figure 3: Tracking modal influence and mediums used in Music & Clowns through a gravitational system model of the documentary genre, Author, 2018

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Music & Clowns is one of six films pro- lived experience and personal interpre- knowing what goes on in his head, the duced by the inaugural year group of tation. Nichols emphasises that the rest of the family are prone to specu- animation masters students graduat- performative mode promotes an inter- lation, often drawing different conclu- ing, from the documentary pathway, at pretation of meaning as a “affect-lad- sions. For instance, while Anna thinks the Royal College of Art (RCA). Initially en phenomenon” (2001, 131). Jakub Jamie’s fascination with clowns must conceived by Joan Ashworth and Sylvie Traczyk, Agata Sobkow, and Tomasz indicate that he has aspirations to be Bringas, following Ashworth’s departure Zaleskiewicz, faculty members from the one, David disputes this, believing Jamie as programme leader, Birgitta Hosea University of Social Sciences and Hu- is drawn to clowns because their com- oversaw its launch in 2015. This coin- manities, Wroclaw, consolidate various edy is communicated almost entirely cided with the first Ecstatic Truth sym- definitions of affect-laden as follows: through body language and therefore posium, hosted by the RCA, and organ- more legible to him than other humour. ised by Tereza Stehlikova and Hosea. People differ in the ease with Inspired by Samanta Moore’s “collab- which they create vivid men- orative cycle” methodology (2014, pp. Figure 3, which tracks detectable influ- tal images of various objects 105-125), I capture my parents differing ences from Bill Nichols modes of doc- and situations. Consequently, perspectives by recording David’s feed- umentary in my graduate film, Music & affect-laden mental images back as he watched an early version Clowns, is a testament to how effective should evoke emotions that of the film, featuring Anna’s specula- the master’s degree has been in familia- differ in intensity in people who tions about Jamie’s aspirations. I then rising me with documentary discourse. vary in mental imagery ability. incorporated David’s verbal metacom- In addition to this training much of the (2015, para. 35) mentary into a later version of the film. success of this project is attributed to This created space for David to narrate working with my family. It became clear In the context of performative animat- a shift in style between the two scenes, early in development that 30 years of ed documentary, a directors role is to both of which are simulations of their re- first hand experiences of my subjects expand and articulate a subject’s af- spective affect-ladened interpretation of facilitated unlimited access and provid- fect-laden reading of a situation. The Jamie’s aspirations (see figure 4). ed an enormous advantage. ambiguous nature of Jamie’s communication strategies provide numerous Case study 2: Interpreting Jamie’s am- The performative qualities of animated opportunities for this. The most tangible biguous behaviour. Demonstrating the documentary, argued by Strøm (2003) evidence for what Jamie is thinking at complex inter-modal dynamics at play and Patrick (2004), and supported by any time is his frequent reference to key when shifting between the perspective of Nichols’s reading of specific examples interests. These include family mem- multiple documentary subjects (2010, 111), are conceptually dominant bers, favoured musicians, clowns, and in Music & Clowns. Nichols characterises the circus. More often than not these Some of the speculations about Ja- performative documentary as, resisting words or phrases are proclaimed spon- mie by the other subjects in Music & the western philosophical tradition of taneously. The limitations on his ability Clowns arguably reveal insight into the knowledge as abstract and universal, to engage in dialogue makes it hard to mindset and biases of that participant. instead promoting forms of knowledge contextualise his assertions and deci- When David recalls Jamie approach- that are subjective, constructed from pher his thought process. Despite not ing him during a moment of stress, he

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Figure 4: Jamie’s interest in clowns representing Anna’s and David’s perspectives. Screenshots from Music & Clowns, Author, 2018

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compares his son’s touch to the effect at that moment. Rather than demon- conflicting attitudes in this interview. I of a “lightning conductor” (author, 2018), strating Jamie’s intention to comfort could see how David might be seen as a draining away the frustration. David is my father, I inferred from this memory sentimentalist, where as I come across proud of Jamie’s sensitivity and percep- that the anecdote was an indicator of as more of a cynic. Resisting the im- tion. During an interview he proposed confirmation bias. This term is used in pulse to introduce to the film as an argu- this anecdote as supportive evidence, behavioural science to describe people’s ment for confirmation bias, I developed however, I remember thinking that this tendencies to overvalue information representational strategies to signify story didn’t prove Jamie’s intentions. that supports an existing belief, while our conflicting interpretations and visu- I’ve seen my brother approach my fa- overlooking evidence that is unsupport- alised the tension between them. ther this way a number of times but this ive or contradictory (Heshmat, para. 2). instance stood out in David’s memory, During the editing process I reflected The scene was initially rendered in possibly because of his vulnerability on how audiences might interpret the TVPaint2. These digitally drawn frames

Figure 5: David’s colour Scanned frame from Music & Clowns, author, 2018

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were then printed and, with the help of comparison with early black and white documentary in 1997, proposed four four assistants, manually coloured. The footage is noticeable. Where charcoal categories: the imitative, subjective, shots where David experienced stress shading is dominant, the frame move- fantastic, and postmodern modes were shaded with charcoal, signifying ment both invigorates the sequence (Wells, 1997). Wells’ subjective mode his melancholy (see figure 5). Jamie is and adds a turbulent quality. This was recognised the attempt of documen- coloured using pastels, a signifier for complimented in post-production with tary makers to use animation to repre- David’s emotional reading of Jamie’s non-diegetic sound design featuring a sent the individual worldview of their healing potential. Triggered at the point recording of heavy rain. As pastels fill subjects. This sub-category shares a of contact, a wave of pigment radiates the frame the rain subsides, making close affinity with Nichols’ performative across the frame, vanquishing gloom way for bird song. The calming effect mode. from the scene. The temporal space was further enhanced by my efforts to of this reenacted memory is fractured stabilise the josseling image sequence, In two scenes I attempt to embody Ja- when I enter the frame to question my correlation with the moment of tran- mie’s perspective. The first instance fea- father about his proposition. This break sition. The cumulative result of these tures abstract animation to emphasise with documentary convention hybri- methods should invoke in the audience the difficulty experienced, by both David dised the performative reenactment recognition of: firstly, an emotional shift and Anna, when imagining the manner with a participatory interview, invoking in David, triggered by Jamie’s approach; in which Jamie thinks. This scene is reflexivity. I signify my detached, ana- followed by a change in tone, instigated unique in the film as the only sequence lytical perspective by transitioning the by my intruding scepticism. The modal I chose not to animate myself. Emily imagery from printed, hand-coloured transition towards participation, and it’s Downe, a first year documentary ani- frames to stark, flat, digital colours ren- reflexive connotation, rather than nul- mation student at the RCA, with an apti- dered in TVPaint (see figure 6). lifying the performative qualities of the tude for abstract action, had never met scene, illuminate the dynamics between my brother. Her unfamiliarity with him Unlike the rest of the film, line-boil is active participants and their subjectivi- liberated the scene from the potential absent from the digital character ani- ty. Jamie’s passivity, and lack of repre- signifiers which may have emerged if I mation in this scene. This specialised sentation in the performative construct were to have animated it. I anticipated term is used, in my experience as a is informed by his absence during the that a lifetime of observing Jamie’s be- practitioner, to refer to an animated line, source interview. haviour and appearance may have con- the product of traced and sequential taminated my attempts at abstraction substitution, often looped, composed of Case study 3: Approaching Jamie’s sub- (see figure 7). a minimum of two drawings. The still- jectivity. Demonstrating the complex ness of the fully digital sequence can ethical and inter-modal dynamics at play The second attempt at representing Ja- be read as a further manifestation of when representing the explicit perspec- mie’s subjectivity took Inspiration from the cynical nature of my critique. In con- tive of an individual documentary sub- A is for Autism, directed by Tim Webb trast, the scanning process of the print- ject. (Arnall & Webb, 1992). In what Ward ed scenes was conducted with such described as a “collaborative working haste that many frames are misaligned. Paul Wells, in an early attempt to inno- method”, Webb encouraged the sub- When played in sequence, a tonal vate a topology specific to animated jects of his film, who are on the autistic

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Figure 6: The perspective of David, hand coloured in charcoal and pastels, and Author, manifest as digital colour. Screenshots from Music & Clowns, Author, 2018 Screenshots from Music & Clowns, Author, 2018

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spectrum, to draw and discuss, on tape, My inability to solicit drawn contribu- performative devices comparable to their passions and concerns (p.94). In tions from Jamie prompted me to ap- the Music & Clowns, scene discussed 2005, I was able to encourage Jamie propriate artwork he created in an edu- in the previous two paragraphs. The to draw my portrait for an A-Level proj- cational context, approximately twenty Seeking Refuge series (2012), features ect about our relationship (see figure five years ago. This process was further first hand testimony from children who 8). Thirteen years later, he showed no problematised by his inability to provide were forced to flee their homeland and interest in participating as an artist in consent, in an informed manner, for me chose to resettle in the United Kingdom. Music & Clowns. I navigated around this to use his artwork. Our shared parents, A comparison between two of the Seek- by tracing, on my graphics tablet, draw- once again, took this decision on his being Refuge episodes reveals potential ings he created when he was younger. half. While maintaining a strong degree problems that arise from an imitative, The resultant images, which were the of resemblance, the images I traced as opposed to collaborative, performa- basis for character designs of the entire were significantly altered by adapting tive animated documentary. There is family in this scene, do not constitute them into new mediums, and coloured, a noticeable difference in the degree “Outsider Art”3. Roger Cardinal, coined before being animated. The aforemen- with which Glynn has executed artistic the label Outsider Art to formulate an tioned conclusion, that my method was collaborations with the young refugees English language equivalent of Jean antithetical to Outsider Art, would not featured in each episode. This is demon- Dubuffet’s term, “Art Brut”. Their over- apply to A is for Autism, as the film is strated by Juliane’s Story (2012), ani- lapping definitions encompass artwork mitigated by the director’s significantly mation direction by Karl Hammond at created without traceable influence collaborative approach. MUMMU Studio, and Ali’s Story (2012), from contemporary art practice or histo- animation direction by Salvador Mal- ry (Cardinal, 1972, p.21). The movement Mosaic Films, under the direction of donado, produced in house at Mosaic is associated with works produced by Andy Glynn, have produced a number of Films. individuals who are either institutionally animated documentaries which adopt or mentally isolated from the art world. If Jamie’s drawings are identifiable as Outsider Art, my taking influence from his representational style could be interpreted as an inversion of the outsider convention due to my formal training, as well as my purposeful response to a recognised art movement. When con- sidering my translations of his work, the indexical chain between Jamie’s drawings and the scene I’ve animated is significantly weak. With regards to the documentary process, the scene is bet- ter described as an imitation rather than a collaboration. Figure 7: An abstract representation of the impenetrability of Jamie’s consciousness. Screenshot from Music & Clowns, author, 2018.

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Ali’s Story is rendered without adher- scanned drawings and those of Juli- at the animated documentary festival, ence to conventional perspective. The anne’s are broken in this episode by the Factual Animation Film Fuss (FAFF), in animation technique, commonly known animators use of vector based tracing. September 2015. Glynn, a trained clin- as cut-out or 2 ½ D, makes use of flat The mechanical indifference of scanned ical psychologist, recorded conversa- puppets, consisting of individual bitmap original artwork, akin to the mecha- tions with the pree-teen subjects of ths images rigged together to make a char- nisms of live action documentary, is series. From this he would extract the acter form. These are composited in a entirely lost. narration for the series by editing out his three dimensional digital space featur- voice. Nichols referred to this process ing parallaxing sets and backgrounds. While this methodology is comparable as the “masked interview”, utilised by Ali’s Story includes a mixture of digital to one used in Music & Clowns, audi- observational documentaries in order imagery and scanned hand rendered ences are left to infer a collaboration to maintain the fly-on-the-wall aesthetic artwork, much of which was created between Glynn, Hammond, and Juliane. (2001, 113). by the subject. His testimony empha- Where as, this is explicitly evident in sises a passion for drawing. A viewer Ali’s Story. The increased creative dom- In contrast to the performative and par- has enough information to identify the inance of the animators in Juliane’s ticipatory tone of the relevant scene in influence Ali’s artwork had on the films Story makes the episode a relatively Music & Clowns, the Seeking Refuge se- art direction. strong example of Nea Ehrlich’s char- ries, directed by Glynn and supported by acterisation of animation as “suspect multiple animation directors, navigates Juliane’s Story includes some animated and un-objective as a documentary lan- a different path between modal influenc- references to what might be her own guage” (2011, para. 3). es, aligning very closely with performa- drawings. However, unlike Ali, she does tive conventions. This dominant mode not corroborate that these are her cre- Glynn described his interview methods contains within it a complex amalgam ations. The indexical link between Ali’s during a panel discussion I attended of other modes: a poetic animation, informed by an observational version of obscured participatory interviews.

Nichols describes a shift in prominence from the observational to participatory documentary modes. He partly attri- butes this trend to the limited scope of observational methodologies for ex- posing a director’s existing bias, as well as the disparity between a literal documentary crew and the figurative fly- on-the-wall (2001, 114). The strategies developed in the participatory mode were successful in mitigating these is- Figure 8: sues, providing further opportunities for A portrait of Author by Jamie. Jamie Surname, 2005, with permission from the artist’s parents.

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filmmakers to reveal their existing prej- The indexicality of footage also helps Other modal explorations in udices by way of perceivable profilmic to mask a filmmaker’s bias. Animation Music & Clowns or audible interactions with subjects. on the other hand provides continuous Participatory documentaries also re- stream of fully constructed semiotic Music & Clowns features one obser- veals some of the influence filmmakers information, providing vast data set for vational scene composed of archive have on events as they unfold (Nichols, a critical analysis of what prejudices footage taken from a 1985 BBC Two 2001, 119). The weaknesses Nichols may have informed the iconographic documentary about my parents expe- attributed to observational films, which coding of each animated documentary. rience raising a child with Down syn- prompted participatory innovations, Ehrlich’s scepticism with regards to the drome (Chapple). This segment orig- helps further illuminate problems re- limited documentary value of animation inally began with exposition from the lating to ethics of authenticity when based on it’s “constructedness” (2011, programme narrator. The testimony comparing Music & Clowns with Seeking parap. 3), is in these circumstances an then shifted to off camera masked inter- Refuge. advantage for a critical viewer. views with my parents, participatory at the point of recording but observational Doctoring the interviews in the Seeking There is also value to be found in re- in the context of the BBC Two documen- Refuge series obscures Glynn’s pres- flecting on why these modal strategies tary. The camera crew hid from sight, ence in order to remove potential dis- were selected by the directors. In Music an explicitly observational filming tech- tractions from the subjects’ testimony. & Clowns I appropriated Jamie’s adoles- nique, providing scope to record the dy- However, whittling down the dialogue cent drawings out of necessity. He was namics between David and Anna, both to produce a monologue nullifies the out of practice and would not engage in their thirties; Guy, my other brother, transparency and ethical benefits of with a collaborative exercise. Where as, age two; and Jamie, age five. Within the the participatory act. The masked inter- Ali’s accomplished drawings were, judg- context of Music & Clowns, careful edit- view facilitates the construction of the ing from his testimony, presented to the ing of this footage allowed me to partial- performative strategy “We speak about filmmakers with enthusiasm. Julianne ly synchronise contemporary testimony ourselves to you”. This notion is essen- on the other hand evidences no enthusi- from Anna and David with footage of tial to the performative mode and influ- asm for drawing, possibly due to her lev- them from over thirty years ago. The enced by auto-ethnography (Nichols, el of ability and the self consciousness observational footage of my brother, 2001, 133-4). However, as mentioned one could infer from this. Glynn may visibly joyful and energetic, combined previously the degree of influence the have masked his presence in the Seek- with the materiality of the damaged Seeking Refuge subjects had on the art ing Refuge interviews because he prob- VHS recording may evoke a sensation direction of this series varied greatly. ably considered his relationship with of nostalgia. This is juxtaposed with the participating children as irrelevant. contemporary participatory interviews Despite the visual auto-ethnographic In contrast, I chose to maintain a role in I conducted with mine and Jamie’s par- and participatory of the seeking refuge the scene with Jamie because our rela- ents. David describes Jamie’s decline series being either inconsistent or lost, tionship is as much of a central theme after being moved out of the family animated documentary audiences are as his ability to respond to questions home into one where he is assisted by in an advantageous position, relative to and the performative interpretation of carers. My brother, who was in his late viewers of a live action documentary. his subjectivity. 20s when this decision was made on his

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behalf, has since entered a gradual intel- the patient’s mother. Not strictly a docu- role of an inquisitive documentary film- lectual decline, probably caused in part mentary, the script was written by D. R. maker, the mimetic, untextured digital by the relatively unstimulating and over- Hood and inspired by the 2011 non-fic- animation technique was intended to ly accommodating environment he lives tion book, Henry’s Demons; co-authored function as a baseline from which the in. Anna, responding to my questions by Henry and Patrick Cockburn; and aesthetics deviated throughout the film. about this decision describes her “no informed by observations of family ther- Taking inspiration from Slaves: an Ani- regrets” attitude, managing the associ- apy sessions in a Hospital in South Lon- mated Documentary (Aronowitsch & Hei- ated guilt by explaining “you can only do don (Borg). Despite the several degrees lborn, 2003), and Ryan (Holborn, Smith, what you think is best at the time” (Au- of separation between the animated Page & Landreth, 2004), I signified both thor, 2018). film and the real world experiences that the participatory context of the audio inspired it, Through the Hawthorn clearly recordings and emphasised my role as The affecting disorientation of combin- demonstrates performative methodol- a documentarian by contriving the ap- ing conflictual visual and verbal narra- ogies, which are situated within the ex- pearance of microphones in frame. tive threads, complimented by a tem- perimental and formal concerns of the poral displacement, places the scene poetic mode. There is a conceptual difference be- closer to the performative mode. It may tween a utilitarian use of microphones produce in a viewer a divided emotional The poetic mode sacrifices the and their symbolic inclusion an animat- state, something akin to cognitive dis- conventions of continuity edit- ed interview. Nick Broomfield’s confron- sonance, a term used in psychology to ing and the sense of a very spe- tations with an unwilling documentary describe the discomfort of simultane- cific location in time and place subject in Kurt & Courtney (1998), may ously experiencing conflicting thought that follows from it to explore not have become a film at all were he to processes (“Reference Terms Cognitive associations and patterns that ask for permission off camera. Thus, his Dissonance”). involve temporal rhythms and wielding of a microphone is a necessi- spatial juxtapositions. (Nichols, ty (Nicholson, 2001, 119). While micro- This pluralised subjectivity approach 2001, 102) phones were present in my family home, was inspired by Through the Hawthorn similarly arranged to how they appear in (2014). An animated documentary, It could be argued that the prominence Music & Clowns, this is not an example commissioned by the Wellcome Trust, of formal devices, which help divide and of Honess Roe’s mimetic-substitution to communicate problems related to the structure my film,Music & Clowns, justify category. I could have easily captured disparate interpretations of risk and atti- a poetic undertone. However, a perfor- these scenes on camera as profilmic tude that can develop during psychiatric mative and participatory reading of the participatory interviews. This fact is ev- treatment. Three directors: Anna Ben- film are more dominant. These devices idenced to the audience when footage ner, Pia Borg, and Gemma Burditt, were could also be interpreted as having a re- of me painting Jamie’s face appears each granted equal space within the flexive connotation. alongside the end credits. By contriving frame, adopting contrasting methods to participatory acts in animation I was simultaneously represent the perspec- Unlike David, Anna and Jamie, I attempt able to both emphasise to audiences tive of each of the three protagonists: a to manifest my own subjectivity consis- the dynamics between subject and film- psychiatrist, a psychiatric patient, and tently throughout the film. Adopting the maker, while also promoting a reflexive

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metadiscourse, due to the purposeful- this point, highlighting the pertinence performative strategy, as I did in my ness of this act. The reflexive potential of these issues with regards to perfor- auto-ethnographic film Patients (2012), of a contrived microphone adjustment mative animated documentaries (2005, I developed distinct representational is exemplified in the scene where Anna 86). This mirrors Ehrlich’s aforemen- styles to separate the subjectivity of the recalls her emotional state following Ja- tioned concerns about the “construct- four documentary participants in Music mie’s birth and the subsequent diagno- edness” and “un-objective” constraints & Clowns. In addition to this, Anna, Da- sis of Down syndrome. The animation of animation in a documentary context vid, and Jamie presented or prompted features her in a hospital bed 40 years (2011, parap. 3). distinct topics that required individual earlier holding Jamie in her arms. At the aesthetic treatment, further pluralis- start of the scene, I adjust the micro- Rather than diminishing the authority of ing my representational pallet. The ac- phone while I sit beside her, ten years animation as a documentary medium, cumulative effect of this montage of before I was born. It is reasonable to Okwui Enwezor, when addressing recent techniques was intended to figuratively predict some viewers may be momen- documentary innovations, argues such increase the sample size of my aesthet- tarily distracted by this folding in of works “...raise new relations of ethics ic readings of the participant’s subjectiv- temporal space. Making use of Nichols’ and aesthetics because instead of pre- ities. Within the social sciences such an comparison between the participatory senting the viewer with non-negotiable approach would in most circumstances and observational modes (2001,p. 125), facts, they create a ‘truth process’” (Eh- be expected to improve the reliability of the onscreen presence of an animated rlich, 2013, p. 252). This mirrors Werner data collected. However, this research documentarian, microphone in hand, Herzog’s attack on the preoccupation contains within it only a degree of cor- prompts the viewer to raise their aware- within the documentary tradition for relation between the figurative data ness of the form, shifting focus momen- seeking objective truths. Herzog mocks points. In addition to the general glow- tarily from the relationship between me, this concept comparing it to the “truth ing assessment of Jamie’s character, the filmmaker and my subject, Anna, of accountants”. In its place he coined there are many conflictual accounts and to the me, the filmmaker and them, my the term “ecstatic truth”, describing it unsubstantiated assumptions about audience. I use this trope a number of as “...mysterious and elusive, and can what life must be like for him from my- times in the film, often with comedic be reached only through fabrication and self, David and Anna. Rather than under- effect. imagination and stylization” (Walker Art mining the usefulness of my results, it Centre). helped me create a rich portrait of Ja- While I would argue the act of navi- mie’s life, contextualised by our family gating between multiple documentary In attempting to strike a balance be- dynamics, the results illuminate the lim- modes is inherently reflexive, Music & tween the fluid concepts of documen- its of our knowledge. The product of my Clowns, completes a full orbit of the per- tary truth proposed by Herzog and En- research, Music & Clowns, suggests we formative mode in figure 3, indicating wezor, and cautionary words regarding can never truly know Jamie because of its dominance. However, Nichols warns the performative mode and animated his limited expressive capabilities, and of the strategic limitations of the mode documentary put forward by Nichols, to a lesser degree each other, due to to address objective truths, in addition Ward, and Ehrlich, I devised a strategy the limits of our own subjectivity. A key to their “excessive” preoccupation with for mitigating the risk of anecdotal sub- aim of this film was to evoke “truth”, in style (2001, 138). Ward also argues jectivity. Rather than developing a single Herzog’s sense of the word, by way of

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a reflexive transparency regarding the publications, the emphasis Honess documentary topology, should not be capability of animation to supersede the Roe places on the difference between considered evidence for his weakness “truth of accountants”, which still holds live action and animation potentially as a taxonomist, but rather, a testament the attention of many live action docu- marginalises the practice of animated to his strength as a theoretician, having mentarians. documentary. In a teaching context, if developed a powerful set of tools to in- fledgling animator documentarians are form and reflect on animated documen- Conclusion encouraged primarily to pursue the top- tary. ics that live action documentary is not My eight years of practice informed capable of addressing, this might point When attempting to articulate the in- animated documentary research has them down a narrowing path. fluence Nichols’ modal system has had been punctuated by exposure to two on the development and production of key text, An Introduction to Documentary Nichols, contrasts this approach in the Music & Clowns, I found it necessary to (Nichols, 2001 & 2010) and Annabelle second edition of his book, Introduction invoke visual metaphors to clarify my Honess Roe’s book, Animated Documen- to Documentary (2010), by introducing insights. This process culminated in the tary (2013). Honess Roe establishes animated documentaries into an exist- development of a gravitational system a bespoke theoretical framework for ing theoretical framework. Despite only model of Nichols documentary modes. animated documentary, breaking from referencing examples of practice that It is a testament to the enduring bril- previous attempts to adapt Nichols exemplify particular modes, the flexibili- liance of Nichols’ theoretical framework, mode system. Honess Roe went back ty of his modal system, characterised by that I was able to expand my initial solar to the drawing board and developed her the “mix and match” approach, prompts system metaphor to not just indicate own taxonomy, based on how animat- the reader to compare and contrast an- the relative position the modes in re- ed documentaries function differently imated and live action documentaries lation to each other and the genre, but from live action: mimetic substitution, that intersect two or more modes. The also account for tenancies and trends non-mimetic substitution, and evoca- boundaryless approach to documentary associated with the two dominant me- tion. Defined as categories rather than discourse that Nichols promotes stimu- diums, live action and animation. The modes, they illuminate three distinct lates a dialogue with dominant live ac- analytical potential of this figurative ap- strategies employed by animated doc- tion forms, while illuminating numerous proach was then demonstrated by the umentaries and, for the most part, they potential paths for creative exploration. ease with which I was able to plot the al- are inapplicable to living documentary. legorical journey of my own production Honess Roe’s framework was both in- The detailed analysis, diagrams, met- through the medley of influences spe- sightful and inspiring, as well as a help- aphors and examples collected in this cific to the documentary genre. While ful framework to improve the efficiency article should demonstrate both the ap- conscious of the risk of over extending with which I repeatedly explained what titude of animation for navigation of Bill the space exploration metaphor, I would my discipline was. Nichols’s modes and the enduring and like to propose one final annex to the invaluable contribution he has made figuration, borrowed from Adam Curtis’ However, when directly comparing the to animated documentary discourse. 2015 essay documentary, Bitter Lake4 practical application of theoretical to- The complex, shifting and interactive (Kelsall). pologies contained within these two relationships contained within Nichols’

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Stanisław Lem’s 1961 science fiction Bibliography novel, Solaris, centres on an explorato- ry mission by cosmonauts to observe Arnell, D. (producer) & Webb, T. (Director), (1992) A is for Autism [Motion Picture]. a strange planet. While orbiting Solaris, United Kingdom: Fine Take. the crew experience vivid hallucinations, which are at times indistinguishable Aronowitsch, D. (co-producer/director) & Heilborn,. H (co-producer/director), (2003). from reality. These mirages, seemingly Slaves: an Animated Documentary [Motion Picture] Sweden: Story AB. evoked by the planet; and the subsequent delusions, are informed by past Author (producer/director), (2018). Music & Clowns [Motion Picture]. United King- experiences and memories of loved dom: Royal College of Art. ones. The application of Lem’s science-fiction to the metaphor of the grav- Author (producer/director), (2012). Patients [Motion Picture]. United Kingdom: itational system model of the Nichols Loughborough University. topology for documentary, expands, all be it fantastically, the intangible mecha- Benner, A. (co-director), Borg, A. (co-director), Burditt, G. (co-director) (2014) Through nism by which each mode inspires and the Hawthorn [Motion Picture]. London: Wellcome Trust. facilitates creativity at the point when filmmaker enters the range of a partic- Borg, P. (2014) THROUGH THE HAWTHORN [website]. Retrieved from http://piaborg. ular mode’s gravitational pull. My choice com to conclude my practice informed theoretical analysis of the animated doc- Bringas, S. (co-producer/co-director) & Yadin, O., (co-producer/co-director), (1998) umentary, Music & Clowns, by leaving Silence [Motion Picture]. United Kingdom: Halo Productions. the realms of newtonian physics, and entering the territory of science fiction, Broomfield, N. (producer/director), (1998). Kurt & Courtney [Motion Picture]. Capitol may indicate the limits of my own com- Films prehension with regards to the precise mechanics of inspiration. Callam, C. (producer); Richards, C. (director) (2016) World Without Down Syndrome [one off television special]. Dragonfly Film and Television.

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Ehrlich, N. (2011, December 22). Animated Documentary as Masking [peer-reviewed 2 2D bitmap animation software. open access online journal], Animation Studies Online Journal, Regrieved from https:// 3 I examined the potential redundancy of journal.animationstudies.org/nea-ehrlich-animated-documentaries-as-masking/ Outsider Art in terms of ontology, due to increasing reach of media and popular cul- ture influences, as well as ethical implica- Glynn, A. (Producer/director), (2012, June). Ali’s Story [Television series episode]. In tions of a movement which incentivises the Seeking Refuge. London: BBC 2. exclusion of artist for fear of creative con- tamination. Author , Art: Redundant Term Glynn, A. (Producer/director), (2012, June). Julianne’s Story [Television series epi- or Useful Category? 2011, BA dissertation, Loughborough University. sode]. In Seeking Refuge. London: BBC 2. 4 In his 2015 essay film, Bitter Lake, Adam Curtis’ proposed the planet Solaris as a Fouman, A. (producer/director), (2008). Waltz with Bashir. Israil:Bridgit Folman Film metaphor for Afghanistan, illuminating the Gang; France: Les Films d’Ici; Germany: Razor Film Produktion. ideological fractures experienced by invad- ing forces throughout modern history. Heshmat. S., (2015, April 23) What Is Confirmation Bias? Wishful thinking. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/science-choice/201504/what-is-confirmation-bias

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