Thomas Austin
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719076893
- eISBN:
- 9781781701775
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719076893.003.0014
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
This chapter uses research among audiences for Touching the Void, the highest grossing British documentary in history, adapted from a best-selling climbing memoir. It examines the film's form, and ...
More
This chapter uses research among audiences for Touching the Void, the highest grossing British documentary in history, adapted from a best-selling climbing memoir. It examines the film's form, and interrogates a mode of engagement that treated the film as an inspirational story of suffering and survival. Revelations are made on how viewers responded to aesthetic aspects such as Touching the Void's use of dramatic reconstructions alongside ‘talking heads’-style interviews with the climbers involved in the original event. Elements of melodrama exist in Touching the Void, and its story of disaster and survival against the odds carried huge emotional clout for some commentators and audiences. A central plank of the documentary's appeal is its presentation of opportunities to find out about, and somehow connect with, other people ‘out there’ in the world. One way in which this connection can occur is via empathetic engagement with another's situation.Less
This chapter uses research among audiences for Touching the Void, the highest grossing British documentary in history, adapted from a best-selling climbing memoir. It examines the film's form, and interrogates a mode of engagement that treated the film as an inspirational story of suffering and survival. Revelations are made on how viewers responded to aesthetic aspects such as Touching the Void's use of dramatic reconstructions alongside ‘talking heads’-style interviews with the climbers involved in the original event. Elements of melodrama exist in Touching the Void, and its story of disaster and survival against the odds carried huge emotional clout for some commentators and audiences. A central plank of the documentary's appeal is its presentation of opportunities to find out about, and somehow connect with, other people ‘out there’ in the world. One way in which this connection can occur is via empathetic engagement with another's situation.
Thomas Austin
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- July 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780719076893
- eISBN:
- 9781781701775
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Manchester University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7228/manchester/9780719076893.001.0001
- Subject:
- Film, Television and Radio, Film
Screen documentary has experienced a marked rise in visibility and popularity in recent years. What are the reasons for the so-called ‘boom’ in documentaries at the cinema? How has television ...
More
Screen documentary has experienced a marked rise in visibility and popularity in recent years. What are the reasons for the so-called ‘boom’ in documentaries at the cinema? How has television documentary met the challenge of new formats? And how do audiences engage with documentaries on screen? Watching the world extends the reach of documentary studies by investigating recent instances of screen documentary and the uses made of them by audiences. This book focuses on the interfaces between textual mechanisms, promotional tactics and audiences' viewing strategies. Key topics of inquiry are: film and televisual form, truth claims and issues of trust, the pleasures, politics and ethics of documentary. Case studies include Capturing the Friedmans, Etre et Avoir, Paradise Lost, Touching the Void and wildlife documentaries on television.Less
Screen documentary has experienced a marked rise in visibility and popularity in recent years. What are the reasons for the so-called ‘boom’ in documentaries at the cinema? How has television documentary met the challenge of new formats? And how do audiences engage with documentaries on screen? Watching the world extends the reach of documentary studies by investigating recent instances of screen documentary and the uses made of them by audiences. This book focuses on the interfaces between textual mechanisms, promotional tactics and audiences' viewing strategies. Key topics of inquiry are: film and televisual form, truth claims and issues of trust, the pleasures, politics and ethics of documentary. Case studies include Capturing the Friedmans, Etre et Avoir, Paradise Lost, Touching the Void and wildlife documentaries on television.
