Documentary Film: Telling it Like it Is?

Documentary films have become a "lingua franca," thanks to ubiquitous streaming services and our devotion to screen time. Offering compelling stories, intriguing "characters," and a lingering resonance, they often function as a Rorschach test that elicits divergent responses. This course decodes the narrative technique, point of view, authorship, and aesthetic approach of nonfiction films that explore scintillating and provocative subject matter. The student develops "visual literacy" skills as we interrogate the inferred relationship between documentary, objectivity, and "truth." In this seminar-style class, we peel back the veneer of the films we watch, examining both form and content.