Grierson – The creative treatment of actuality. The use of flash and canted angles construct a more exciting and involving perspective of something that happened
Nichols – These photographs construct a poetic mode of address, and represent the fragmentary nature of memory itself
Metz – the photography is driven to index the world, and is attempting to make life more real by taking pictures of it
Bill Nichols and modes of documentary
The selection of a family photograph constructs a fragmentary and nostalgic mode of address. The choice of cinematography here, with a handheld shot slowly and jerkily panning over the photograph heightens this sense of nostalgia through positioning the spectator in a privileged and direct mode of address. This sense of nostalgia is anchored through the smeary blur of the photograph and the Super-8 footage that Poilley chooses to shoot the photograph on . This combination of micro elements constructs a confusing yet ultimately delightful set of meanings that expertly manipulate the target audience.
Key scene analysis - Michael’s monologue/Johnny’s monologue
Towards the end of the film, we are presented with two similar yet contrasting monologues where both Michael and Harry comment and question on the structure of the documentary itself. This highly self-reflexive montage calls into question Polley’s ability to construct a narrative and constructs a highly self-deprecating mode of address. We are instantly confronted with the MES of a torn piece of paper with the production details scribbled all over it. The deliberately low production values here construct a sense of pathos and sympathy for Polley, as she is clearly working with a low budget .This is immediately reinforced by Sarah clapping in Michael’s face as he begins a heartfelt monologue. This combination of low production values and an apparent lack of empathy constructs Sarah not as a sympathetic onlooker, but an annoying and thoughtless filmmaker completely lacking in empathy. Is including the clap encoding a sense of professionalism or detachment? Or is it demonstrating Polley's incompetence? The visible filmmaking techniques detaches Polley from her family and perhaps create a sense of objectivity
The low production values however encode a sense of verisimilitude.
Christian Metz - the indexical bond
Metz argued that by recording something, we make it real. With home video technology (Super 8, video cameras, and latterly mobile phones), we can record private moments to look back on forever. Stories We Tell also employs this method, with the presentation of authentic looking Super-8 footage constructing a nostalgic mode of address. The trouble is, this footage is all fake, and Polley is all too keen to share the fact it is fake with us.
So what is true?
Representation
A representation is always a viewpoint of someone’s thoughts. A representation is always an ideology
Ideology - the ideas and beliefs of the director of a film
However, more simply, a representation is where something is shown again. Everything in a film is a representation. Costumes, food, people, faces, props, guns, animals, cars, settings, cities, dragons, zombies
Granton Trawler (1934, Grierson)
Ostensibly a film about a fishing boat, and the fishermen that work on it.
How does Grierson construct reality in this film?
- The lack of music, with only sparse diegetic music used constructs a more immersive experience for the audience
- A wide variety of shots are included, including MSs, CUs, ECU. This is for a variety of reasons. Firstly, a single take would be boring! Secondly, by showing a variety of angles, the importance of the ship, the nets and the fisherman is emphasised. Finally, by shooting every aspect of the ship, Grierson is methodically documenting every element, and allows audiences to learn about life in a trawler
- The choice of shot duration tends to be longer than in a narrative film. This allows the spectator to see everything, and to fully explore the ship
- The use of shot/reverse shot is typically used in exciting conversations in narrative films here is used to show the process of fishermen using the pulley