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Documenting, Dramatizing, and Representing C hina's Porcelain World in Broken Pots Broken Dreams
Author(s) -
Gillette Maris
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
visual anthropology review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.346
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 1548-7458
pISSN - 1058-7187
DOI - 10.1111/var.12029
Subject(s) - filmmaking , ethnography , representation (politics) , documentary film , visual arts , aesthetics , sociology , art , history , literature , media studies , anthropology , political science , movie theater , law , politics
In this essay, I argue that a successful ethnographic film, like a good story, responds both to its film subjects and to its audience's expectations. I discuss why I made a film about J ingdezhen's porcelain workers (as opposed to a text) and the relationships, goals, ideas, and constraints that influenced the final film. I contextualize my process in a broader discussion of documentary and ethnographic filmmaking, looking at representation in documentary, sensory anthropology, and the conventions of Western dramatic writing.