Individual blog entry
Given the theoretical discourse surrounding the legitimacy of animated documentary Is there animated work you consider falls into one or more of these categories.
Consider:
Environmental/ecological issues
Gender representation
Ethnic representation
Cultural heritage/Exchange
Diversity
Colonialism
Ethical issues
Education
Industry/Vocation
Equality/Human Rights
Community/Social Issues/Social justice
Politics/Government
Waltz with Bashir (2008) by Ari Folman is a prime example of an animated documentary that addresses Politics/Government, Ethical Issues, and Equality/Human Rights.
Here is how it fits the categories and theoretical framework:
1. Legitimacy and Definition
Waltz with Bashir validates the “taxonomy of Animated Documentary” outlined in the lecture because:
- Production: It is created “frame by frame”.
- Subject: It is “about the world rather than a world wholly imagined”, specifically the 1982 Lebanon War.
- Reception: It was “received as a documentary by audiences, festivals or critics” despite being animated.
2. Theoretical Justification
The film demonstrates why animation is a “viable means of documentary expression” in the following ways:
- Addressing Absence: The film reconstructs a massacre and lost memories where no archival footage exists. This exemplifies the theory that animation is fruitful because it resolves a “conflation of absence and excess”. It replaces the “expected indexical imagery” (which is absent) with animation that goes beyond merely transcribing reality.
- Subjectivity: Instead of observable events, the film depicts “subjective, conscious experience”—specifically the trauma and repressed memory of a soldier. This allows the documentary to cover subject matters “traditionally outside of the documentary purview”.
3. Addressing Criticism
While critics sometimes argue that animation might “detract from the seriousness of the situation” , Waltz with Bashir counters the historical attitude that “animation is for children”. By using a non-photorealistic medium, it potentially creates a “more universal level of identification” with the horrors of war, rather than preventing direct engagement.