Pablo: A Short Scene (Doc Mode 2)
Posted by Gerardo Alba on April 9, 2014
Filed under Uncategorized
I find it awkward to be in front of the camera so for this project I chose the reflexive mode of documentary. In describing this mode, Bill Nichols says that the reflexive mode “calls attention to the assumptions and conventions that govern documentary filmmaking “(31). Trinh T. Minha’s film Surname Viet Given Name Nam made me question what documentaries present as truth and I knew I wanted to play with that idea for this doc mode activity. In Surname Viet Given Name Nam, actresses played women from previous interviews which made me want to reconstruct a form of reality that I was familiar with. My cousin’s facebook profile was recently on my newsfeed and I remember reading an article he wrote for SMU News. “A Quadriplegic Speaks” talked about his struggles and successes after becoming a quadriplegic which I found to be very uplifting. Unfortunately, Pablo died in 2012 but I still wanted to tell his story somehow.
According to Nichols, “reflexive documentaries also tackle issues posed by realism as a style” (195). By challenging the techniques associated with realism, reflexive documentaries “deconstruct the impression of unimpeded access to reality and invites us to reflect on the process by which this impression is itself conducted through editing” (196). Once the viewers become aware that they are viewing what I present to them as truth, they will hopefully gain a better understanding of how and why the film was made. Using his article, I cast Julian in the role of Pablo and staged the interview to reflect on his life.
When it comes to documentaries, I usually believe that they are inherently about some truth while other films are merely fiction. By presenting Julian as my cousin talking about his accident, the audience hopefully not only questions my film, but the authenticity of documentaries in general. Reflexive documentaries, according to Nichols should not only make the viewer question the film and how it was created, but also how the film allowed the viewer to believe the filmmaker’s presentation as truth. Hopefully I have been able to do this with my short film.
I have included a link to my cousin’s article in SMU News for any of those who are interested in learning more about his life.
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whoffman on April 29th, 2014 7:58 pm
Wow I was truly taken away by this Doc mode activity Gerardo! Not only do you approach your theme of living life to the fullest in such a unique way, but you also utilize aspects of “Surname Viet, Given Name Nam” that engages the ready to analyze the film’s realistic truth. Because I usually accept a film’s representation of reality as truth from the beginning, I assumed that the chosen actor was actually Pablo. As a result, I was extremely taken aback when Julian stood up and walked away. Through this experience, I will now be more skeptical and challenge a film maker’s depiction of truth when watching documentaries. Moreover, I was very impressed with your smooth and continuous editing between the interview and the photo montage at the end. Well done!