Winter 2004

This information effective for Winter 2004. Check with instructor the first day of class for any changes.

Porter College

[PRTR-023C]

23C. Documentary/Mockumentary Films

Tuesday 4:00–6:30 p.m., Porter Din 2
Instructor: R. E. Giges

Tentative Schedule

Week 1. Stretching the Contemporary Documentary

Tuesday, January 6: Halving the Bones (1:10, Ruth Ozeki Lounsbury) VT5615

Week 2. Mockumenting the Creative Process, Part I: Staged Theatrics

Tuesday, January 13: Waiting for Guffman (1:24, Christopher Guest) DVD657
DVD has additional footage and commentary track
http://guffman.warnerbros.com/
http://members.tripod.com/~cityofblaine/guffman.html
Prepare Faking It, pp. 1-63, 125-7; Reader, pp. 1-2, 10-26, 66-69

One notebook entry due today:
1) Compare the drama-documentary to the mock-documentary

Documentary correlates: Running Fence (David Maysles and Charlotte Zwerin) VT 5970

Week 3. Mockumenting the Creative Process, Part II: Faux Rockumentary

Tuesday, January 20: This is Spinal Tap (1:22, Rob Reiner) DVD967
Special Edition DVD w/commentary track and extensive outtake footage
http://www.spinaltap.com/
http://www.spinaltapfan.com/

Documentary correlates: Gimme Shelter (Albert Maysles, David Maysles, Charlotte Zwerin) VT 7339, The Last Waltz (Martin Scorsese) VT 2543, Don't Look Back (D.A. Pennebaker) DVD748

Prepare Faking It, pp. 63-99, 120-5; Reader, pp. 47-65

One notebook entry due today:
2) Compare the documentary styles of Gimme Shelter and Last Waltz, based on the two Reader articles.

Week 4. Ersatz Newsreel

Tuesday, January 27: Zelig (1:19, Woody Allen) VID 47

Prepare Faking It, pp. 100-120; Reader, pp. 27-38, 70-85

One notebook entry due today:
3) Discuss Spinal Tap vs. Guffman in terms of Faking It's typology ("degrees")

Week 5. Mockumenting the Cinematic Process, Part I: Inventing Film History

Tuesday, February 3: Forgotten Silver (:52, Peter Jackson) DVD1075
http://www.waikato.ac.nz/film/mock-doc/fs.shtml
Excerpt from Episode Two of An American Family (Craig Gilbert, 1973)

Prepare Faking It, pp. 131, 144-155
Prepare Reader, pp. 39-43, 96-97

One notebook entry due today:
4) Discuss Zelig and either identity or reflexivity
Turn in notebook entries #1-4 at end of class. If you've revised earlier entries, mark them as rewrites.

Week 6. Mockumenting the Cinematic Process, Part II: Verité Lies

Tuesday, February 10: Real Life (1:39, Albert Brooks) VT 2817

Prepare Reader, pp. 98-107

One notebook entry due today:
5) Forgotten Silver imitates and satirizes a particular style of documentary film. Identify this style and discuss Guzzetti's theories (Reader, pp. 39-43) as they relate to such documentaries.

Week 7. Political Mockuments: Part I

Tuesday, February 17: Watermelon Woman (1:19, Cheryl Dunye) DVD1458
Prepare Reader, pp. 86-95

One notebook entry due today:
6) Discuss Real Life's commentary about The American Family television series (and perhaps about observational documentaries, in general).

Final paper/project description due (see assignment)

Week 8. Political Mockuments: Part II

Tuesday, February 24: Bob Roberts (1:41, Tim Robbins) VID 575

Prepare Faking It, pp. 140-3; Reader, pp. 111-113

One notebook entry due today:
7) Discuss Watermelon Woman (your choice of theme).

Final paper/project: paper argument or script treatment/Artist's Statement or video shooting script/Artist's Statement due (see assignment).
Bring 3 copies of your argument, treatment, or shooting script for small group critiques.

Week 9. Edges of the Mockumentary

Tuesday, March 2: David Holzman's Diary (1:14, Jim McBride) VT3373/VID 1138
Prepare Reader, pp. 124-6; and finish Faking It, pp. 160-6, 181-9

One notebook entry due today:
8) Discuss Bob Roberts' position on the media as is revealed through the characterizations of Manchester and Riplin.

Turn in notebook entries #1-8 at end of class. If you've revised earlier entries, mark them as rewrites.

Week 10. Your Mockumentaries

Presentations of your mockumentary paper (optional), video, or script.

Turn in your final paper/scripts.