Compare and Contrast the Reflexive and Performative modes of documentary. Use specific examples from the film we watched in class to support your ideas.

The Reflexive and Performative modes of documentary both have memorable films that we watched in class. The modes were a bit hard to distinguish at first because they were both very unique ways that a filmmaker could convey their message to the audience. However, after watching the Performative documentaries, the Reflexive mode became  clearer.

The Reflexive mode focuses the audience’s attention on how a documentary film is made, by showing how a scene is filmed and through possible discussions done by the director. The Performative mode can also bring attention to this film making process. However, the main distinction is how the director interacts with the film (Nichols 151-152). In the Reflexive modes, the filmmaker is heard talking about the process or letting the camera film unusual shots. The Performative mode will show the filmmaker interacting with subjects, walking around during the fieldwork, and even filming themselves as they go through the process of planning their scenes.

The Reflexive mode explores how certain documentary methodologies, such as interviews and fieldwork, can be presented in ways that break conventional means. In the film Sur Name Viet Given Name Nam, the interviews stand out as being unconventionally filmed, almost to the point where the audience loses focuses on what the subject is saying. The camera may start off being focused on the subject, but will often drift off of the face.

It is a method that calls attention to the act of interviewing because it makes the audience reflect on what expectations they had for how an interview should be done. There is not a rule for documentaries that states a camera must remain focused on a subject’s face, but it is expected nonetheless by the audience. The Performative mode can be a bit more conventional in this sense, as seen in the film The Gleaners and I. Though both modes utilize interviews, the Performative mode uses a more relaxed and informal method of interviewing that comes off as more spontaneous. The interviews are not inside with a white background, but outside and interactive with the environment. The camera may or may not be steady, but it tends to stay focused on the subject. The camera provides the audience with scenes as seen from the point of view of the film maker, with traveling shots and whimsical interactions that keep the film interesting and adventurous.

The Reflexive mode uses unique methods to break expectations in a refreshing way, but a potentially frustrating way if it is not expected. Along with filming methods, there is also an element of voice-overs, and to some extent an explanation of how the film process was developing. The Performative mode also goes explores the elements of unique film making but in a way that is interactive within the message that is being delivered to the audience. A personal tone can feel even more intimate in the Performative mode than the Reflexive mode due to the style that the scenes would be filmed in. Both modes produce unique and interesting films but with different intentions behind their messages.