Journalism 286 History of Documentary Spring 2020 3 units, Wed 2:00pm - 5:00pm, Production Lab, Room 101 Carrie Lozano, Lecturer office hours: I will provide a link for office hours appointments in bcourses. (email) [email protected] Julia Sizek, Reader [email protected] Course Description History of Documentary covers the evolution of primarily American documentary film from the first moving images to the present. We will focus on both commissioned and independent films, produced for a variety of distribution models including theatrical, broadcast and digital. Where possible, we will also discuss international documentaries, the current documentary landscape, and big-picture field and career insights. Please note that this course is prerequisite for graduate students who intend to enroll in the documentary thesis seminar in their second year. In addition to a historical and genre overview, we will concentrate on the practicalities of producing non-fiction documentaries for broad audiences, and on documentary materials, structure, genre, points-of-view and ethics. Considering issues of representation, race, class, gender, identity and power, we will debate and deconstruct the ways in which documentary film has both upheld and challenged some of the U.S.’s most entrenched and problematic narratives. The class’ success demands that students keep up with screening, reading and writing. I hope the class will be fun, interesting, inspiring, and occasionally paradigm shifting as we delve into deep philosophical, creative and journalism questions. House Rules Class starts at 2pm sharp on Wednesdays in the TV Lab, adjourning at 5:00pm. This syllabus is a living document and will change from time to time. I will do my best to give fair warning when it does. But please check bcourses regularly. All 1 assignments must be posted to bcourses, and I will make any changes to the syllabus there, so please check each week. Grades are determined by class attendance, class preparedness, class participation and timely submission of written assignments. All students are expected to engage in discussion each week. Arrive prepared, with questions, critiques and ideas that you want to discuss. Documentary filmmakers are characterized by their incessant curiosity and outsized creativity, come to class wearing your documentary hat. Required Screening: Approximately two to three hours per week (sometimes more, sometimes less), with additional screening in each class session. The film list includes major films from the documentary canon, as well as documentaries in current popular culture. Note the lengthy listing of additional films which are of interest, either “because they are excellent examples of a genre, a betrayal to the audience, or a complication of documentary’s promise.” (Jon Else) We will attempt to make assigned films available through streaming platforms as much as possible. Chris O’Dea will invite you to BOX, where many assigned films are available. We will also use Kanopy, available via your Calnet account. From time to time, we will access films via Netflix, Hulu or Amazon. When not available online, we will direct you to the appropriate resource. Many DVDs are available at the Media Resources Center of Moffitt Library, where they may be viewed on the big screen, and at the Berkeley Public Library. We will provide hard to find films on DVD. However you watch the films, do it uninterrupted on as big a screen as possible with good sound. Google Chromecast ($35.00) is an excellent way to watch digital films on a bigger screen. Always screen the week's films before you do the week's reading, since it is important to first experience the documentary as a naive viewer would, unencumbered by the meta and the production backstory. Keep concise and coherent notes as you go. If you’ve seen the film before, even recently, watch it again. Group screenings are highly recommended. Organizing screenings in the library, TV lab or at someone’s house make class even more fun and lively. Required Reading: 10•-100 pages per week will be assigned from the text, Documentary, A History Of Non-•Fiction Film, second edition, by Erik Barnouw••• 2 still the classic after all these decades. (available on Amazon) Additional readings will be posted on bcourses. The readings are not taxing. Note that some of the readings in the syllabus are optional. Optional Reading: Bill Nichols’ excellent Introduction To Documentary, available at your local bookseller or online, offers a good overview of documentary, organized not around chronology, but around questions of documentary practice. Also useful is Pat Aufderheide’s excellent small survey, Documentary Film, a Very Short Introduction available via Amazon. Required writing: Written work 300 words (really 300) each week on various topics relating to the assigned films. Weekly papers are due by 10:00 am every Wednesday, uploaded to bcourses. Papers should indicate that you’ve done the assignment. This writing is essential practice for your career. Writing about film is a critical skill in documentary filmmaking and long-form storytelling. If you cannot clearly, convincingly and engagingly write about visual stories, you will have a hard time successfully pitching your own work. This is a way to build that muscle. Students planning to enroll in the documentary production track in their second year are required to write a 2-page concept paper for a proposed documentary in the final weeks of the course. An outline will be provided. Please note that documentary is a dynamic and ever-changing field. Things of interest happen weekly, especially in the spring as the new festival season launches. At times, content in class will diverge from the syllabus, but you must stay on track with required screening and reading. January 22 – What is Documentary Film? • Introduction to the course • Documentary filmmaker skill set • Chronology of Visual Media • Overview of documentary genres and documentaries in popular culture Read before class Documentary, Barnouw 1-33 3 ----------------------------- January 29 – The Other: ethnographic film and the language/materials of documentary filmmaking • The materials and constructions of documentary - Useful Documentary Terms • Ethnographic film • Representation and who gets to tell the story? Screen before class Nanook Of The North, 1920, Robert Flaherty (BOX) (https://berkeley.app.box.com/file/123701616355) Ethnic Notions (Berkeley Kanopy- login with library proxy and CalNet ID) (https://berkeley.kanopy.com/video/ethnic-notions-0) Read before class Barnouw 33-1•00 Anonymous Nanook review https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B30Ms1w6TK58NHZxTkQyOC1NMVN5M1ljQmNz VktHWVo5N1pB/view?usp=sharing Ethnographic Film, Karl G. Heider 20-24: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B30Ms1w6TK58SDQxMEJ2dlAxMy05UWVzRXZN MTRoZE0tS1BB/view?usp=sharing Writing What is Flaherty’s contract with the audience? Separate yourselves from the reading: What do you believe to be true or not true in Nanook? From the film, what can you glean about the filmmaker’s relationship to the subject? Additional films of interest Forest Of Bliss, Robert Gardner 4 In And Out Of Africa, Ilisa Barbach Sweetgrass, Ilisa Barbash and Lusien Taylor Louisiana Story, Robert Flaherty Man Of Aran, Robert Flaherty 1934 The Ax Fight, Timothy Asch, Napoleon Chagnon Les Maitres Fous, Jean Rouch Surname Viet, Given Name Nam, Trinh T. Minh•ha Imagining Indians, Victor Masayesva Stranger With A Camera, Elizabeth Barrett 2000 Coming To Light, Edward S. Curtis, 2001, Anne Makepeace Tokyo Waka, 2012 John Haptas and Kristine Samuelson Virunga, 2015, Orlando Von Einsiedel Nanook Revisited, 1994, Claude Massot, National Film Board Of Canada Taking Pictures, 1996, Les McClaren and Annie Stiven -------------------------- February 5 – Partisanship, Propaganda, Point-of-View, Advocacy and Journalism • How do these genres differ, what devices are used, and how do we know if a film can be trusted? • Contract with the audience. Read before class Barnouw 100-182 “Ethics of Imagemaking,” Jay Ruby https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B30Ms1w6TK58S0lGM0hMVTZaTFdFTE4zYnk4d TJPNXNpR2p3/view?usp=sharing Screen before class Triumph Of The Will, Leni Rieffenstahl (first 60 minutes only) (BOX) (https://berkeley.app.box.com/file/127395654666) 5 Harvest Of Shame, 1960, CBS, Edward R. Murrow (52 minutes) (https://www.cbsnews.com/video/1960-harvest-of-shame/) Writing Assignment Is there a clear distinction between advocacy films and propaganda films? What are the similarities? In this week's screening, what elements of cinematic language are used to further the filmmaker's point-of-view? Additional Films Of Interest Reassemblage, 1983, Trinh T. Minh-ha Fahrenheit 911, 2002, Michael Moore Trapped, 2016, Dawn Porter Know Your Enemy, Japan, 1944, Frank Capra The Mercy Of Nature, 1997, Else Primus Video, 2000, Else Football America, 1988, Phil Tuckett, NFL Films The Wonderful, Horrible Life Of Leni Rieffenstahl , 1991, Ray Mueller The Cove, 2009, Louie Psihoyos The Invisible War, 2012, Kirby Dick Occupy Unmasked, 2012, Steve Bannon Vaxxed, 2016, Andrew Wakefield Das Blaue Licht, Leni Riefenstahl The Plow That Broke The Plains, Pare Lorentz The River, Pare Lorentz Listen To Britain, Humphery Jennings Outfoxed , Robert Greenwald Olympiad , 1937, Leni Riefenstahl The Cove, 2008, Louie Psihoyos Waiting For Superman, 2009, Davis Guggenheim Food Inc., 2008, Robbie Kenner The Invisible War, 2011, Kirby Dick The Hunting Ground, 2015 Kirby Dick Rape in the Fields, 2013, Andres Cediel Rape on the