During this class Paul exposed us to a number of different scenes from films, all of which seemed to neatly blend documentary and drama. I found some of these examples to be quite eye-opening, such as the Méliès (?) shot of the women handwashing, which cleverly utilises the 1.33 : 1 aspect ratio to divide the shot into distinct sections; a composition that I could imagine seeing as a painting. This was furthered by the fact that a group of men in the shot stand very still, unaware that Méliès is filming them, which makes for an interesting narrative dynamic in the shot – the women continue to go about their task without knowing that they’re being filmed whereas the men are essentially social actors by interacting with the camera.

I was also drawn to the documentary of the football player, which favoured subtitles over any narration. Not only did this align with what the player was talking about, but also breaks down language barriers and the potential distraction that narration can often be in my opinion. It gave a real sense that these were genuine thoughts that the player was having, that they hadn’t been performed in any way for us to receive as viewers.

I’m really enjoying being exposed to these different examples. Keen to see what Paul has in store next class!