The Autobiographical Mode

For me, this was one of the most interesting modes of documentary to learn about.  The reason it was so interesting for me was simply because of its somewhat didactic nature.  This particular mode is pretty much entirely geared toward provoking some sort of social change within a culture.  I originally anticipated that the cause of this was that the filmmaker was inherently tied to the issue in some way, as was the case with Roger and Me.  Such an emotionally charged issue for a filmmaker is bound to turn out a product that attempts to cause some sort of change or at the very least raise awareness of the subject at hand.  I definitely realized this as I was watching Roger and Me and the films by Sadie Benning (especially Sadie Benning’s pieces since the issues she addresses hit so close to home for her). 

Something that I would have liked to see more of though was this mode represented by a filmmaker who was less attached to the subject.  The reading mentions filmmakers whose personal biases remain a mystery, as with Jennie Langston’s documentary Paris Is Burning.  I personally feel that I would have an easier time swallowing a documentary like this simply because I wouldn’t feel like a message is being shoved down my throat by an eager lobbyist waiting to change my opinion to match theirs.  Langston’s own views on the issue at hand in her documentary (which happens to be sexual orientations) never once come up in her documentary, which I find to be kind of an empowering mechanism in the film.

One film that I think fits quite nicely into this mode is a film I saw at sundance last year called 5 Broken Cameras, in which a Palestinian filmmaker tells about the Israeli invasion of his home.  This piece was definitely interesting and managed to be somewhat emotionally charged yet maintain a degree of fairness toward the opposing viewpoints, which I appreciated.  Here’s the trailer for your enjoyment.