Documentary subjects speak out: Relational empathy and ethics in intercultural documentary film education

Jan Nåls

doi:10.18546/fej.01.2.06

Abstract

The teaching of documentary film faces particular ethical and practical challenges in intercultural environments when working with marginalized groups. The author of the paper was one of the acting teachers for an intercultural group of film students making documentaries on sex workers in rural South African communities in 2015. The paper explores the pedagogical and ethical dimension of the encounters between students and the documentary subjects. It argues for the benefits of creating shared meaning – a third culture – through the fostering of relational empathy between student film-makers and their subjects. The focus of the analysis lies in the emotional reactions of the documentary subjects, observed in community screenings in 2016. Conclusions suggest that the concept of relational empathy can help us understand and develop the teaching of documentary in novel ways. It represents a pedagogical choice that is ethical, as it allows for consent that is truly informed.

Highlights

Film-making does not occur in a cultural vacuum, nor does film education
This study addresses the interaction between film students and their subjects, the sex workers, during the documentary film process
The analysis focuses on the three separate screenings of the finished documentaries that were organized for the documentary subjects in their respective local communities

Summary

Introduction

Film-making does not occur in a cultural vacuum, nor does film education. Documentary film-makers, in particular, are frequently faced with the task of representing individuals who are considerably different in terms of their cultural background, ethnicity, social class and their experiences of privilege, cultural agency and so forth. If each of these positions is considered equal, they should have the same possibilities to commit and to engage in relation to one another In projects such as Cornered Voices, student film-makers often experience conflicting obligations during their production process: to themselves, their student colleagues, their subjects, sponsors or other stakeholders, lecturers, and their potential audience. The latter position is often favoured in sensitive situations, such as in our case study when dealing with sex workers, or dealing with other marginalized groups, as it supposedly allows the film students to address the imbalance of power between film-maker and subject Both the described positions are simplified, they are, present in documentary film education. The screenings provided an opportunity to articulate change, and to create shared understanding – and perhaps agree on some common goals – through, I would argue, relational empathy (Broome, 1991)

Conclusions and recommendations

Notes on the contributor