The Art of Fact: An exploration of the relationship between theory and practice in documentary filmmaking
type: CreativeWork
description: This practice led thesis is an exploration of the ways in which theory can inform practice in documentary filmmaking. Section 1 of the thesis provides an embedded review of literature in order to offer the reader a critical evaluation of the theoretical debates that have informed my documentary practice. This section analyses issues associated with definitional debates on documentary film, while also addressing the formal features associated with what Bill Nichols (1991; 2001) called modes of documentary. The work of particular filmmakers will be discussed, namely Dziga Vertov, Jean Rouch and the city symphony makers of the early 20th century, in relation to how their ideas and film work have had a major impact on my own approach to filmmaking. Section 2 is the practical portfolio of work itself and acts as an exploration of theory within a practical context. The audio-visual texts include, A Film About Nice (2010), a dawn-to-dusk city symphony, which focuses on capturing the everyday life of a European city. It echoes the tradition of the City Symphony makers of the early 20th Century, however the significant difference here is that I explore some of the visual techniques adopted by the filmmakers and explore them within a sonic context. This film can be seen as an exploration of the impact rhythm has on signification within film. Mechanized Deconstruction (2011) is a recording of a live performance at Documentary Now 2011. This was my first venture into producing documentary films within a live context, via the use of DJ/VJ technologies. There is a cine-poem, which acts as a collaborative approach to documentary, combining the work of the poet and the work of the filmmaker. It also acts an example of how some of the techniques I have developed during the live performance of documentary have had an impact on the documentary films that I have since produced. The Mill (2016) adopts a similar structure to The City Symphony, however this film can be seen as an Industri…
abstract: This practice led thesis is an exploration of the ways in which theory can inform practice in documentary filmmaking. Section 1 of the thesis provides an embedded review of literature in order to offer the reader a critical evaluation of the theoretical debates that have informed my documentary practice. This section analyses issues associated with definitional debates on documentary film, while also addressing the formal features associated with what Bill Nichols (1991; 2001) called modes of documentary. The work of particular filmmakers will be discussed, namely Dziga Vertov, Jean Rouch and the city symphony makers of the early 20th century, in relation to how their ideas and film work have had a major impact on my own approach to filmmaking. Section 2 is the practical portfolio of work itself and acts as an exploration of theory within a practical context. The audio-visual texts include, A Film About Nice (2010), a dawn-to-dusk city symphony, which focuses on capturing the everyday life of a European city. It echoes the tradition of the City Symphony makers of the early 20th Century, however the significant difference here is that I explore some of the visual techniques adopted by the filmmakers and explore them within a sonic context. This film can be seen as an exploration of the impact rhythm has on signification within film. Mechanized Deconstruction (2011) is a recording of a live performance at Documentary Now 2011. This was my first venture into producing documentary films within a live context, via the use of DJ/VJ technologies. There is a cine-poem, which acts as a collaborative approach to documentary, combining the work of the poet and the work of the filmmaker. It also acts an example of how some of the techniques I have developed during the live performance of documentary have had an impact on the documentary films that I have since produced. The Mill (2016) adopts a similar structure to The City Symphony, however this film can be seen as an Industri…
author: Marley, K
keywords: PN1990 Broadcasting, PN4699 Journalism
date published: 2017-11
date modified: 2026-07-24T06:30:22Z
provider: Liverpool Jon Moores University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: Liverpool John Moores University

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.24377/LJMU.t.00007607