In this weeks lecture we began by looking at photographer 'Martin Parr', I was intrigued by Parr's work as often photographers aim to make their work as glossy and professional as possible. Whereas Parr's work, be it still professional, aimed to capture reality which involves making people look as ridiculous as possible. I was confused as to how this would segway into documentary, however it became evident that documentary itself often escapes from the flashy studio lights and colouring that Hollywood films have, and focuses on capturing their version of reality. For Parr his interpretation of reality treats the everyday person as flawed, but also through the comedic tones of his photography suggest that this is okay. In documentary we see how the filmmaker wants to represent their own truth through different types of documentary modes, these modes were created by theorist Bill Nichols, and define the genres within documentaries. The most intriguing genre I found was 'reflexive', it is the genre I find I connect with the most, because I enjoy documentaries by filmmakers such as Michael Moore and Louis Theroux the reflexive style is furthered by the characters these filmmakers take on of the 'klutz'. These often results in a rather satirical piece of film-making, and plays back into the 'Martin Parr' style of photography, of making others look ridiculous and pointing at the gaping flaws the everyday person can have. The session reignited my fascination with documentary, and the various forms it can come in.
Some of Parr's work: https://www.worldphoto.org/sony-world-photography-awards/2017-outstanding-contribution-photography-martin-parr
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