Ethnographic Filmmaking (online)

This course will introduce participants to contemporary practice in ethnographic filmmaking, as well as the ethics, and practicalities that inform this diverse field of research practice.

It is aimed at beginners who are interested in incorporating the method into their social research but have no (or little) prior experience of filmmaking.

• Course Timings: 10:00 – 17:00 

As part of pre-course joining instructions, we ask that delegates have watched a film.  

The links to view a film will be shared in the pre course joining instructions issued ONE week prior to the course date. 

All are available online, behind a paywall with the fee of approx £5.00 being applicable.  Many universities subscribe to Kanopy, please check your institutional access.

Course Contents:

• Contemporary and experimental practice in the interdisciplinary field of ethnographic filmmaking;
• Critical history of the genre;
• Ethics of representation;
• Watching and decoding ethnographic films;
• Basic first steps for shooting a film;
• Important considerations for starting an ethnographic filmmaking project.

By the end of this workshop you will:

• Be able to think critically about the history of ethnographic filmmaking and how their practice can respond to this;
• Understand the core characteristics of contemporary ethnographic filmmaking – across the globe, and across genres;
• Have experience of watching and critiquing an ethnographic film;
• Be confident to start the process of shooting and editing an ethnographic film.

Course Description

The intention is to give participants an understanding of the historical tradition to which ethnographic filmmaking belongs, with an emphasis on the ethical and reflexive questions that this history poses to the contemporary practitioner.

In many ways, it has never been easier to make films to a high standard, but a considered approach to the ethics of representation and visual storytelling are equally as important as technological skills to the ethnographic filmmaker – if not more so.

This course will stress that theory, fieldwork, and filmmaking are interconnected parts of this process of social enquiry. It will place an emphasis on creative or experimental approaches to making ethnographic films.

The course will familiarise participants with contemporary practice in the interdisciplinary field of ethnographic filmmaking, and how this often challenges the assumptions and power dynamics built into early examples of the genre. It will require participants to watch a contemporary film and engage in a group discussion on its strategies of filmic representation.

It will also include instruction in very basic set-ups for shooting and editing a first ethnographic film, or how to develop a team. Although it is not a practical filmmaking course, it will signpost participants towards resources through which they can develop these skills independently.

Participants may have an idea for a film (and hopefully be prepared to share it), or may be skilling up for future research opportunities. 
This course is for participants who have never made a film before. 

Target audience: Academic, all social science or humanities disciplines, all levels (but new to filmmaking)