The Documentary - by B Smaill (Hardcover)

About the Book

"An exploration of the role of emotion and affect in contemporary documentary film, arguing that analysis of the sociality of the emotions is integral to advancing our understanding of the formulation of selfhood in documentary. Belinda Smaill also examines documentary's political function, looking at issues such as gender, ethnicity and class"--Provided by publisher.

Book Synopsis

Belinda Smaill proposes an original approach to documentary studies, examining how emotions such as pleasure, hope, pain, empathy, nostalgia or disgust are integral both to the representation of selfhood in documentary, and to the way documentaries circulate in the public sphere.

Review Quotes

'Smaill's excellence lies in knowing what she's doing: examining how emotion is both presented and evoked in and by documentary for political ends. This fluid conception of politics is deeply imbricated with feminist and other movement politics that assume affect is part of political motion, something that incorporates the agenda of change. That movement might be uncertain, in need of constant correction, but it is also affirmative and embodied, in the maker, in the film, and in the audience and social world.' Chuck Kleinhans, Jump Cut

'Smaill covers very diverse subject material in an engaging and accessible manner. Her references extend far beyond the world of the big screen: rather than furrow through documentary film theory, the author draws on multidisciplinary sources to explore the idea of emotion, including the psychoanalytical perspectives of Melanie Klein and the linguistic articulations of Elaine Scarry.' - New Cinemas: Journal of Contemporary Film 8.1

About the Author

BELINDA SMAILL is a Lecturer in Film and Television Studies in the School of English, Communications and Performance Studies at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia.