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An Analysis of Kim Longinotto's Documentary Filmmaking Using Observational narratives and feminist practice: An analysis of Kim Longinotto’s documentary filmmaking using Rough Aunties (2008) as a case study. Shannon Rae Milojkovic 207504432 Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Media and Cultural Studies in the Graduate Programme in the College of Humanities, University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. DECLARATIONS I, Shannon Rae Milojkovic, declare that 1. The research reported in this thesis, except where otherwise indicated, is my original work. 2. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or examination at any other university. 3. This thesis does not contain text, data, pictures, graphs or other information obtained from another person or source, unless specifically acknowledged as being so obtained. 4. This thesis does not contain any other person’s writing, unless specifically acknowledged. Where such written sources have been used, then they have always been acknowledged, either through the use of quotation marks or indented paragraphs and with accompanying in-text references that link to my bibliography. 5. This thesis does not contain text, graphics or tables copied and pasted from the Internet, unless specifically acknowledged through in-text references and in the bibliography. Student Name: ______________________________ Signature:__________________________________ Date: ___________________ As the supervisor, I acknowledge that this research dissertation/thesis is ready for examination. Name: _____________________________________ Signature:__________________________________ Date: ___________________ ii Acknowledgments It was quite impossible to complete this project alone, and therefore, I would like to extend my deepest gratitude to the many people and organisations that provided various support: This material is based upon work supported financially by the National Research Foundation (NRF) and therefore I acknowledge the National Research Foundation who funded the commencing and completion of this investigation. However, any opinion, findings and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author and the NRF does not accept any liability in regard thereto. I would like to extend a huge amount of gratitude to Kim Longinotto, who has been more than generous in her communications with me. I must also thank Mildred Ngcobo, who provided invaluable and rare insight into being Longinotto’s subject, and Jackie Branfield and the Bobbi Bear team for allowing me access to their workplace and Rough Aunties (2008). I would like to thank my supervisor, Professor Anton van der Hoven, for his tireless work and patience. It has been an absolute privilege to learn from him. I must also thank my co-supervisor and friend, Subeshini Moodley, who provided moral, academic and administrative support over the years. Thanks also go to Jane Argall, the editor, for her thorough review and endorsement of the final draft. I thank my parents, Jean and Dragan Milojkovic, for their substantial financial support, their trust and patience which mobilised me to do this work. I am so grateful that they chose this degree as an investment, which I will treasure forever. I hope you will be proud. To my partner, James Theil, for his enduring support, mostly expressed through long deliberations over documentary, feminist film and my fascination with this subject. I must also say thank you to the University of KwaZulu-Natal and the Media and Cultural Studies department. Finally, and most importantly, I would like to thank family and friends for the prayers said over this project. These prayers were answered in their entirety. iii Abstract This research is primarily focused on the feminist filmmaker Kim Longinotto’s South African- based documentary Rough Aunties (2008). Through a process of close analysis it aims to describe how Longinotto structures the observational material that she gathered for this film; to place this analysis in the context of her other films that share thematic and stylistic similarities; and to explore the link between these filmmaking techniques and Longinotto’s feminist agenda. Despite her films falling into what Nichols (2001) describes as the observational mode, this research argues that Bruzzi’s (2000, 2006) concept of the mixed-mode documentary provides a more appropriate framework for understanding Longinotto’s films. In order to substantiate this view, this research draws on and adapts the analytical framework that Bordwell and Thompson (2001, 2008) use for the analysis of feature films and shows how Longinotto’s film narrative is built out of a series of loosely interconnected petits récits (Lyotard, 1984, 1992), a technique which allows her to respect the unpredictable voices of her subjects and also to acknowledge the presence and significance of the camera. Examination of both these elements of Longinotto’s film-making practice leads to the conclusion that Smaill (2009) is correct when she argues that Longinotto is an underrated feminist filmmaker whose work provides an opportunity for the voices of women on the margins to be heard. The text- based analysis is supported by material drawn from two extended interviews: one with the filmmaker herself, the other with Mildred Ngcobo, one of the leading characters in Rough Aunties. Keywords: Kim Longinotto, observational documentary, mixed-mode documentary, petits récits, narrative structure, third wave feminism, feminist filmmaking. iv Table of Contents Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................................ iii Abstract ........................................................................................................................................................ iv Table of Contents .......................................................................................................................................... v Table of Figures ........................................................................................................................................... vii 1. Introduction .......................................................................................................................................... 1 2. Literature Review and Theoretical Framework .................................................................................... 9 2.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 9 2.2 Representation............................................................................................................................ 11 2.2.1 Hall’s account of representation ......................................................................................... 13 2.2.2 Documentary film form and representation ...................................................................... 17 2.2.3 Picturing truth: the representational potential of the image ............................................. 22 2.3 Documentary forms .................................................................................................................... 25 2.3.1 Cinéma vérité ...................................................................................................................... 28 2.3.2 Documentary practice ......................................................................................................... 30 2.4 Crafting the story: Narrative structure and film form ................................................................ 34 2.5 Feminist theory ........................................................................................................................... 38 2.5.1 Acknowledging the Third World woman ............................................................................ 40 2.5.2 Feminist film practice .......................................................................................................... 46 3. Methodology ....................................................................................................................................... 49 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 49 3.2 Film selection .............................................................................................................................. 49 3.3 Formal analysis ............................................................................................................................ 50 3.3.1 Documentary studies .......................................................................................................... 50 3.3.2 The elements of film form .................................................................................................. 52 3.3.3 Adapting formal analysis ..................................................................................................... 54 3.4 The interviews ............................................................................................................................. 58 3.4.1 The online interviews .......................................................................................................... 59 3.4.2 The face-to-face interview .................................................................................................. 61 3.4.3 Authenticity and reliability .................................................................................................
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