And she would like to know... "Do You See What I See?"
See an excert in the Summer 2008 issue of
Xcp Streetnotes http://xcp.bfn.org/fournillier.html
Take a look and tell us what you think using the comments below.
Friday, July 25, 2008
How does a documentary of the making of event change or inform one's perception of the event?
Janice Fournillier documented preparations for 2005 Carnival season in Trinidad and Tobago.
And she would like to know... "Do You See What I See?"
See an excert in the Summer 2008 issue of
Xcp Streetnotes http://xcp.bfn.org/fournillier.html
Take a look and tell us what you think using the comments below.
And she would like to know... "Do You See What I See?"
See an excert in the Summer 2008 issue of
Xcp Streetnotes http://xcp.bfn.org/fournillier.html
Take a look and tell us what you think using the comments below.
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5 comments:
I very much enjoyed the photos and Dr. Fournillier's inquiry. My first reaction (which also calls on my own research on festivals)is that the very definition of the event changes--in some ways it seems to confine the event and in other ways liberate it. Knowing more about preparation may remove some of the mystery and magic for some, while for others it may expand the event to well beyond it's temporal and spatial boundaries. It is no longer an event at a specific time and a specific place which is witnessed but rather is a dynamic and fluid experiential happening where one day blends with another and one year with another. To me, it strips the event of it's "special" or exotic status and casts it, rather, as part of the ongoing and ever changing narratives of those who participate (however defined) in it. In my own life, I value the opportunity to try and understand others' stories. Thanks for the opportunity to comment.
I am now intrigued by the Carnival celebrations of Trinidad and Tobago. Seeing the images behind the process of creating a carnival queen draw me in and stimulate my transactions. I tend to think of documentaries of a multimodal representation of our experiences within a specific context. I agree with Eisner that the arts, in this case images, maximize the probability of an experience. Isn't this what we strive for as researchers? To invite readers to share in our experience, and walk away with their own unique experience with the data? If so, this documentary, maximizes this probability...
Seeing the pictures makes me want to know more. More about the events, the people, and the photographer. Reading about visual research and then looking at photos such as these sparks so many questions about the context of the shots.
The first thing that your research does is make me want to go to Carnival!
I have always associated Carnival with 'fun', 'partying', a sense of community', 'colour'. Not once have I ever thought of the 'work' in association with Carnival. Of course I have always known that work is involved to pull off such an event, but it did not really register just how much is involved. Your behind-the-scenes images provide footage of all the hard work that goes into making the event such an enjoyable experience for those who solely experience it the way I conceptualize it ('fun' etc.)
I am much more appreciative of the sweat equity that is involved in Toronto's version of Carnival, and perhaps that will chance how I experience the next Caribana that I attend
My experience of carnival is very different from what I see depicted in the documentary photos. I enjoy getting a "behind the scenes" view because it gives me a greater appreciation for the planning, time, effort and engineering involved. There is so much more to it than "merely" a beautiful and festive parade. I think it is very valuable to get a glimpse of some of the "unsung heroes" and behind-the-scenes efforts that go into the event. I suspect that the presence of the documentary maker served to validate their efforts in the minds of the participants. I wonder to what extent these individuals use some of these skills in their daily lives - a project such as this takes incredible planning, coordination, engineering, etc.
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