Abstract
For more than two decades, documentary animation has emerged as an independent film style in the world. However, most of the studies and reviews have been conducted in line with the general knowledge and general structure of this style. Therefore, the need to investigate and investigate this method of filmmaking from different perspectives is very noticeable. As a result, this research examines documentary animation from an aesthetic point of view, so that a step can be taken in order to better understand documentary animation. In this research, the library method has been used and in addition to books, theses and related research articles, internet resources have also been used. After reviewing the research literature and conducting a case study on the works A Stranger Comes to the City, the Moon Bird and the Survivors, it is concluded that the presence of animation arrays in documentary cinema not only adds to the visual appeal of the work, but also plays a constructive and very effective role in the field of better understanding of the subject of the film maker and more optimal representation of the desired reality.
Keywords: Animation, Documentary Animation, Documentary, Aesthetics
1 Chapter 1:
2 Research overview
2.1 Statement of the problem
In the last two decades, the production of those films known as documentary animation has increased and they are often shown in various film and animation festivals around the world.
(Roe.H,2011)
Documentary or animated documentary has been raised as an independent style in filmmaking for more than two decades. Although the real history of this film form reaches more than 80 years, academic studies about it have only been started for a decade, so the theoretical discussions related to it are not sufficiently abundant. It is used to call any type of work that is prepared in a single frame method and using different objects, materials, paintings and the like. (Gharibpour, 1377)
Throughout the history of cinema, live-action films and animated films have tried to use each other's expressive elements in order to strengthen their expressive language as much as possible and influence their audience by creating more attractiveness. (Qaim Maggi, 1378)
Contrary to all the interest and attention that has been directed towards documentary animation in recent years, not much research work has been done on this style of animation. (Roe.H, 2011)
On the other hand, considering that so far less research has been done on documentary animation with an aesthetic approach, examining documentary animation from this point of view can be useful in order to better understand this style of expression.
In the research section of this research, the documentary animations "A Stranger Comes to the City" produced by Jacqueline Goss and produced in 2007, "Moon Bird" produced by John and Faith Hubley produced in 1959 and the animated film "Survivors" produced by Sheila Sofian produced in 1977 will be reviewed. It is aesthetics. In addition to that, it is tried to propose suitable solutions for the production of domestic documentary animations.
2 Theoretical foundations and review of research background
1.2 Introduction
Since This research is new and relatively emerging in the field of animation, so the research literature related to this topic is not very diverse. After searching in internet databases such as Sage, Elsevier, Ebsco, we find that the number of studies that have measured the impact of more than one variable on the topic of documentary animation is very small in the most optimistic case. Meanwhile, a study on the aesthetics of documentary animation is not found. 1.3 Theoretical foundations of the research In this part of the research, we will discuss domestic and foreign research works and the meanings and concepts related to the subject of the research. 1.3.1 Documentary animation In this part of the research, we will examine the meanings and concepts of documentary animation. Then we have an overview of the history of documentary animation, from the beginning to now.
1.3.1.1. Meanings and concepts
The strong desire to divide the documentary style into different types has also affected the research and reviews in the field of documentary animation. Many researchers consider documentary animation as one of the six types of documentary film production categorized by Bill Nichols. (Roe.H, 2009)
Bill Nichols [1] in the book "Introduction to Documentary Film" [2] introduces six main methods of documentary production. He divides the ways of making documentary films as follows:
Observational method: the best example is cinema verité or the movement of direct cinema[3] that emerged in the late 1950s. The most important mission of this method of documentary is immediate and direct perception of the surrounding world. As examples of this documentary method, we can refer to the film Hospital [4] made by Frederick Wiseman [5], and the documentary film Do not look behind you [6] made by Richard Pennebaker [7].
Participatory method [8] (interactive): Unlike the observational style, this method welcomes direct communication between the filmmaker and the subject of the film. The filmmaker not only supervises the filming process, but also shows his opinions in the film. He applies his point of view to the film and to the events in question. The director is not omniscient, but expresses his personal opinions.
Explanatory method[9]: This method is more known as verbal interpretation and logical reasoning, and often, the narrator's voice is used in such works. In this way of documenting, the premise is based on a logical argument, which in the end ends with a correct and appropriate answer, and usually the director's preferred meanings and concepts are conveyed to the viewer. Often, this style of documentation is dedicated to making special television programs. Grierson's documentaries[10], produced in the 1930s and 1940s in England, are considered to be clear examples of this method of documenting.
Reflexive method[11]: This method deals with the structural nature of the documentary film. It shows the conditions of making the film and often takes advantage of the presence of the director himself in the film and his explanations about the film production process. In this way, the audience gets to know how to make a movie, sound and edit it. The best example of this style of documentary film is Man with a Camera[12] made by Zhiga Vertov[13].
Executive method[14]: This method deals with the mental nature of the documentary maker, and reading the minds of the audience and their expectations from the documentary film. In this style of filmmaking, the director's emphasis is on emotional and social impact as much as possible, instead of simply expressing reality. Among such documentary films, we can refer to the documentary film [15] made by Michael Moore [16].
Poetic method: This method moves away from the objective reality of a specific situation or issue, in order to grasp the inner and esoteric truth, and in this way, it takes advantage of the poetic manipulation of the event. In this style of documentary filmmaking, visual communication, harmony and rhythm of sounds, tone and texture and descriptive capabilities are emphasized. Among the prominent examples of this method, we can point to A Man from Arran[17] by Robert Flaherty[18] and Olympia[19] by Lenny Liefenstahl[20].(Nicholes 2001)
On the other hand, Gillian Lacey[21], the director of the Animation Department of the "NFTS" University of England and the creator of the acclaimed documentary animation "Dancing Inside"[22], divides documentary animation into the following categories. Slow down:
Informative films, such as Walking with Dinosaurs[23], a scientific documentary made by the BBC (image 1)
Illustrator films, such as Kidnapped[24], by Paul Wester[25] and produced in 1995 (image 2)
Dialogue-oriented or interview-oriented films, such as War Story[26] made by Peter Lord[27] and Produced in 1989 (picture 3)
Films with a narrative theme, such as the animation Conversation with Harris[28], by Sheila Sofian[29] and produced in 2001 (picture 4)
Films showing the inner world, such as Dancing Inside[30], produced by Gillian Lacey and produced in 2004
Gillian Lacey's classification is based on narration and it seems Gillian Lacey does not show interest in works that have professional text speech (such as scientific and historical works) and does not consider them as part of the main body of documentary animation, and on the other hand, she attaches great importance to real sound.