Research Article
The Effects of Action Cameras on Non-Fiction Cinema: A Comparative Analysis of the Films Drifters (1929) and Leviathan (2012)
Abstract
There is a reciprocal relationship between the advances in recording technology and film styles. This work shows the effects of action cameras on non-fiction cinema by comparing two films that focus on the lives of fishermen. While Drifters (1929) served as a prototype for documentary film, Leviathan (2012), completely shot with action cameras, is referred not only as an original documentary, but also an art film. This work argues that action cameras, with their unique technical advantages and wide usage, have the potential for leading profound changes in non-fiction cinema. Generally, few directors and producers who had the means of production could introduce new styles and manipulated the existing ones. However, currently action cameras with professional qualities are available for amateur usages. Easy mounting options and the ability to record everywhere let people try various shooting alternatives for producing authentic and original works. Through video sharing websites, a huge number of amateur people have the opportunity to share their works, receive feedback, and be inspired by other people’s productions concurrently. This provides the most fertile condition for improvement of personal video productions, and emergence of new visual styles and artistic approaches in non-fiction cinema.
References
- Andrews, N. (2013, 28th November). Review: Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/3ff66ec6-5825-11e3-a2ed-00144feabdc0
- Bagust, P. (2008). ‘Screen natures’: Special effects and edutainment in ‘new’ hybrid wildlife documentary. Continuum, 22(2), 213-226. DOI:10.1080/10304310701861564
- Barnouw, E. (1983). Documentary: A History of The Nonfiction Film. New York: Oxford U.P.
- Beatttie, K. (2005). Documentary Screens: Non-fiction Film and Television. Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan.
- Bradshaw, P. (2013, 28th November). Leviathan – Review. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/28/leviathan-film-review Brunner, C. (2012). Immediation as process and practice of signaletic mattering. Journal of Aesthetics & Culture, 4(1), 1-10. DOI:10.3402/jac.v4i0.18154
- Chapman, J. (2015). A New History of British Documentary. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Dowell, P. (2013, 16th March). 'Leviathan': The Fishing Life, From 360 Degrees. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Kera News. https://www.keranews.org/2013-03-16/leviathan-the-fishing-life-from-360-degrees
- East Anglia Film Archive. (____). http://eafa.org.uk/work/?id=1513. Date of Access: 21 May 2021
- Ellis, J. C. (____). Drifters - Film (Movie) Plot and Review. [Review of J. Grierson’s film Drifters]. Film Reference. http://www.filmreference.com/Films-Dr-Ex/Drifters.html
- Ellis, J. C., & McLane, B. A. (2005). A New History of Documentary Film. New York: The Continuum International Publishing Group.
- Flaherty, J. R. (Director). (1922). Nanook of the North [Film]. USA & France: Les Frères Revillon & Pathé Exchange.
- Foster, T. (2012, 26th January). The GoPro Army. Inc. https://www.inc.com/magazine/201202/the-gopro-army.html. Date of Access: 21 May 2021
- Goldsmith, L. (2013, 23rd February). Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Reverse Shot. http://www.reverseshot.org/reviews/entry/1682/leviathan
- Grierson, J. (1933). The Documentary Producer. Cinema Quarterly, 2(1), 7-9.
- Grierson, J. (Director). (1929). Drifters [Film]. United Kingdom: Empire Marketing Board.
- Hoare, P. (2013, 18th November). Leviathan: The Film That Lays Bare the Apocalyptic World of Fishing. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/18/leviathan-fishing-film-moby-dick
- Hockenson, L. (2013, 05 th March). How GoPro Created a Billion Dollar Empire. http://mashable.com/2013/03/05/gopro-camera/ Date of Access: 21 May 2021
- Howell, P. (2013, 14th March). Leviathan A Fish-eye View Aboard a Commercial Trawler: Review. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2013/03/14/leviathan_a_fisheye_view_aboard_a_commercial_trawler_review.html
- Juzwiak, R. (2013, 03rd January). Leviathan: A Documentary Made by People Who Hate Documentaries. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Gawker. https://gawker.com/5987966/leviathan-a-documentary-made-by-people-who-hate-documentaries
- Lawson, J. H. (1964). Film: The creative process: The search for an audio-visual language and structure. New York: Hill and Wang.
- IMDb. (____). Leviathan. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2332522/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast. Date of Access: 21st May 2021
- Lim, D. (2012, 31st August). The Merger of Academia and Art House. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/02/movies/harvard-filmmakers-messy-world.html
- Macnab, G. (2013, 28th November). Leviathan: Film Review - Jarring, Murky Brilliance. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/leviathan-film-review-jarring-murky-brilliance-8970985.html
- Marsh, C. (2012, October 05). Review: Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel's Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Slant. https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/leviathan/
- McLane, B. A. (2013). A New History of Documentary Film. New York: Bloomsbury Academic Publishing.
- Monaco, P. (2003). The Sixties: 1960-1969. Berkeley, CA: Univ. of California Press.
- Murphie, A. (2014). Making sense: The transformation of documentary by digital and networked media. Studies in Documentary Film, 8(3), 188-204. DOI:10.1080/17503280.2014.961631
- Pinkerton, N. (2020, 30th January). Leviathan Review: A Wet and Wild Documentary Like Nothing You've Seen (or FELT). [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Sight & Sound. https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/reviews-recommendations/film-week-leviathan
- Pulver, A. (2013, 28th June). Edinburgh Gives Top Award to Experimental Documentary Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/jun/28/edinburgh-film-festival-awards-leviathan
- Robey, T. (2013, 28th November). Leviathan, Review. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/10481802/Leviathan-review.html
- Sexton, J. (2002). Grierson’s machines: Drifters, the documentary film movement and the negotiation of modernity. Canadian Journal of Film Studies, 11(1), 40-59. DOI:10.3138/cjfs.11.1.40
- Stevens, I. (2013, 28th November). Cold Malicious Waves. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. London Review. https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2013/november/cold-malicious-waves
- Sussex, E. (1975). The Rise and Fall of the British Documentary: The Story of The Film Movement Founded by John Grierson. London: California U.P.
- Taylor, L.C., & Paravel, V. (Directors). (2012). Leviathan [Film]. United States: Cinema Guild.
- Teare, K. (2019, 15th August). Yale Film Scholar on Dziga Vertov, the Enigma With A Movie Camera. [Review of D. Vertov’s film Man With A Movie Camera]. Yale News. https://news.yale.edu/2019/08/12/yale-film-scholar-dziga-vertov-enigma-movie-camera
- Thompson, K., & Bordwell, D. (2003). Film history: An introduction. New York: McGraw.
- Tobias, S. (2013, 09th December). The year in Documentaries: 2013 Was About Playing With Form. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Dissolve. https://thedissolve.com/features/2013-in-review/309-the-year-in-documentaries-2013-was-about-playing-w/
- Tolley, G. (2013, 18 th November). Interview: Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Verena Paravel, Directors of Leviathan. [L. Castaing-Taylor and V. Paravel’ın filmi Leviathan’ın Eleştirisi]. The List. https://film.list.co.uk/article/56527-interview-lucien-castaing-taylor-and-verena-paravel-directors-of-leviathan/
- Vertov, D. (2007). Sine-Göz (Trans. A. Ergenç). İstanbul: Agora Kitaplığı.
- Vertov, D. (Director). (1929). Man With a Movie Camera [Film]. Soviet Union: Vseukrainske Foto Kino Upravlinnia (VUFKU).
- Wilder, K. E. (2009). Photography and the art of science. Visual Studies, 24(2), 163-168. DOI:10.1080/14725860903106161
- Winston, B. (1993). The documentary film as scientific inscription. M. Renov (Ed.), Theorizing Documentary (p. 37-57). London, UK: Routledge.
Aksiyon Kameraların Kurmaca Olmayan Sinemaya Etkileri: Drifters (1929) ve Leviathan (2012) Filmlerinin Karşılaştırmalı Analizi
Abstract
Film tarzları ile kayıt teknolojilerindeki gelişmeler arasında çift taraflı bir ilişki vardır. Bu çalışma balıkçıların yaşamlarına odaklanan iki filmi karşılaştırarak, aksiyon kameraların kurmaca olmayan sinemaya etkilerini gösterilmektedir. Drifter (1929) belgesel film için bir prototip olarak düşünülürken, tamamen aksiyon kameralar ile çekilmiş Leviathan (2012) sadece orijinal bir belgesel olarak değil aynı zamanda bir sanat filmi olarak bilinmektedir. Bu çalışmada, kendine özgü teknik özelliklere ve yaygın kullanıma sahip aksiyon kameraların, kurmaca olmayan sinemada derin değişimler yapabilecek potansiyele sahip olduğu iddia edilmektedir. Sinemada yeni tarz geliştiren veya var olan tarzları manipüle edebilmiş olanlar, genellikle üretim araçlarına sahip az sayıda yönetmen ve yapımcılardır. Ancak, günümüzde profesyonel niteliklere sahip aksiyon kameraların, amatörler tarafından kullanımı da mümkündür. Aksiyon kameraların, her yere kolay monte edilebilmeleri ve her koşulda kayıt yapabilmeleri, insanlara otantik ve orijinal görsel üretimler yapabilmeleri için farklı alternatif çekim denemelerine izin vermektedir. Video paylaşım siteleri vasıtasıyla, birçok amatör birey, çalışmalarını paylaşma, geri bildirim alma ve aynı zamanda diğer insanların çalışmalarından esinlenme fırsatına sahiptir. Bu durum, kişisel video yapımların gelişmesi, kurmaca olmayan sinemada yeni görsel tarzların ve sanatsal yaklaşımların ortaya çıkması için en verimli koşulu sağlamaktadır.
References
- Andrews, N. (2013, 28th November). Review: Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Financial Times. https://www.ft.com/content/3ff66ec6-5825-11e3-a2ed-00144feabdc0
- Bagust, P. (2008). ‘Screen natures’: Special effects and edutainment in ‘new’ hybrid wildlife documentary. Continuum, 22(2), 213-226. DOI:10.1080/10304310701861564
- Barnouw, E. (1983). Documentary: A History of The Nonfiction Film. New York: Oxford U.P.
- Beatttie, K. (2005). Documentary Screens: Non-fiction Film and Television. Basingstoke: Palgrave MacMillan.
- Bradshaw, P. (2013, 28th November). Leviathan – Review. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/28/leviathan-film-review Brunner, C. (2012). Immediation as process and practice of signaletic mattering. Journal of Aesthetics & Culture, 4(1), 1-10. DOI:10.3402/jac.v4i0.18154
- Chapman, J. (2015). A New History of British Documentary. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Dowell, P. (2013, 16th March). 'Leviathan': The Fishing Life, From 360 Degrees. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Kera News. https://www.keranews.org/2013-03-16/leviathan-the-fishing-life-from-360-degrees
- East Anglia Film Archive. (____). http://eafa.org.uk/work/?id=1513. Date of Access: 21 May 2021
- Ellis, J. C. (____). Drifters - Film (Movie) Plot and Review. [Review of J. Grierson’s film Drifters]. Film Reference. http://www.filmreference.com/Films-Dr-Ex/Drifters.html
- Ellis, J. C., & McLane, B. A. (2005). A New History of Documentary Film. New York: The Continuum International Publishing Group.
- Flaherty, J. R. (Director). (1922). Nanook of the North [Film]. USA & France: Les Frères Revillon & Pathé Exchange.
- Foster, T. (2012, 26th January). The GoPro Army. Inc. https://www.inc.com/magazine/201202/the-gopro-army.html. Date of Access: 21 May 2021
- Goldsmith, L. (2013, 23rd February). Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Reverse Shot. http://www.reverseshot.org/reviews/entry/1682/leviathan
- Grierson, J. (1933). The Documentary Producer. Cinema Quarterly, 2(1), 7-9.
- Grierson, J. (Director). (1929). Drifters [Film]. United Kingdom: Empire Marketing Board.
- Hoare, P. (2013, 18th November). Leviathan: The Film That Lays Bare the Apocalyptic World of Fishing. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/nov/18/leviathan-fishing-film-moby-dick
- Hockenson, L. (2013, 05 th March). How GoPro Created a Billion Dollar Empire. http://mashable.com/2013/03/05/gopro-camera/ Date of Access: 21 May 2021
- Howell, P. (2013, 14th March). Leviathan A Fish-eye View Aboard a Commercial Trawler: Review. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Toronto Star. https://www.thestar.com/entertainment/movies/2013/03/14/leviathan_a_fisheye_view_aboard_a_commercial_trawler_review.html
- Juzwiak, R. (2013, 03rd January). Leviathan: A Documentary Made by People Who Hate Documentaries. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Gawker. https://gawker.com/5987966/leviathan-a-documentary-made-by-people-who-hate-documentaries
- Lawson, J. H. (1964). Film: The creative process: The search for an audio-visual language and structure. New York: Hill and Wang.
- IMDb. (____). Leviathan. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2332522/fullcredits?ref_=tt_cl_sm#cast. Date of Access: 21st May 2021
- Lim, D. (2012, 31st August). The Merger of Academia and Art House. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/02/movies/harvard-filmmakers-messy-world.html
- Macnab, G. (2013, 28th November). Leviathan: Film Review - Jarring, Murky Brilliance. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Independent. https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/reviews/leviathan-film-review-jarring-murky-brilliance-8970985.html
- Marsh, C. (2012, October 05). Review: Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Véréna Paravel's Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Slant. https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/leviathan/
- McLane, B. A. (2013). A New History of Documentary Film. New York: Bloomsbury Academic Publishing.
- Monaco, P. (2003). The Sixties: 1960-1969. Berkeley, CA: Univ. of California Press.
- Murphie, A. (2014). Making sense: The transformation of documentary by digital and networked media. Studies in Documentary Film, 8(3), 188-204. DOI:10.1080/17503280.2014.961631
- Pinkerton, N. (2020, 30th January). Leviathan Review: A Wet and Wild Documentary Like Nothing You've Seen (or FELT). [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Sight & Sound. https://www2.bfi.org.uk/news-opinion/sight-sound-magazine/reviews-recommendations/film-week-leviathan
- Pulver, A. (2013, 28th June). Edinburgh Gives Top Award to Experimental Documentary Leviathan. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/jun/28/edinburgh-film-festival-awards-leviathan
- Robey, T. (2013, 28th November). Leviathan, Review. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. The Telegraph. https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/10481802/Leviathan-review.html
- Sexton, J. (2002). Grierson’s machines: Drifters, the documentary film movement and the negotiation of modernity. Canadian Journal of Film Studies, 11(1), 40-59. DOI:10.3138/cjfs.11.1.40
- Stevens, I. (2013, 28th November). Cold Malicious Waves. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. London Review. https://www.lrb.co.uk/blog/2013/november/cold-malicious-waves
- Sussex, E. (1975). The Rise and Fall of the British Documentary: The Story of The Film Movement Founded by John Grierson. London: California U.P.
- Taylor, L.C., & Paravel, V. (Directors). (2012). Leviathan [Film]. United States: Cinema Guild.
- Teare, K. (2019, 15th August). Yale Film Scholar on Dziga Vertov, the Enigma With A Movie Camera. [Review of D. Vertov’s film Man With A Movie Camera]. Yale News. https://news.yale.edu/2019/08/12/yale-film-scholar-dziga-vertov-enigma-movie-camera
- Thompson, K., & Bordwell, D. (2003). Film history: An introduction. New York: McGraw.
- Tobias, S. (2013, 09th December). The year in Documentaries: 2013 Was About Playing With Form. [Review of Lucien Castaing-Taylor & Verena Paravel’s film Leviathan]. Dissolve. https://thedissolve.com/features/2013-in-review/309-the-year-in-documentaries-2013-was-about-playing-w/
- Tolley, G. (2013, 18 th November). Interview: Lucien Castaing-Taylor and Verena Paravel, Directors of Leviathan. [L. Castaing-Taylor and V. Paravel’ın filmi Leviathan’ın Eleştirisi]. The List. https://film.list.co.uk/article/56527-interview-lucien-castaing-taylor-and-verena-paravel-directors-of-leviathan/
- Vertov, D. (2007). Sine-Göz (Trans. A. Ergenç). İstanbul: Agora Kitaplığı.
- Vertov, D. (Director). (1929). Man With a Movie Camera [Film]. Soviet Union: Vseukrainske Foto Kino Upravlinnia (VUFKU).
- Wilder, K. E. (2009). Photography and the art of science. Visual Studies, 24(2), 163-168. DOI:10.1080/14725860903106161
- Winston, B. (1993). The documentary film as scientific inscription. M. Renov (Ed.), Theorizing Documentary (p. 37-57). London, UK: Routledge.
There are 42 citations in total.
Details
| Primary Language | English |
|---|---|
| Subjects | Communication and Media Studies, Radio-Television |
| Journal Section | Research Articles |
| Authors | |
| Publication Date | September 16, 2021 |
| Published in Issue | Year 2021 |
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