COMMS 312 Documentary and Social Change - Course Outlines

Course Prescription

Investigates the close alignment between documentary film and social and political transformation. The course will explore documentaries associated with political movements from anti-fascism to LGBTI issues. Students will produce a ‘mini-documentary’ as part of their coursework.

Course Overview

Documentary film is said to have a close alignment with social change, reflecting or even producing political transformation. COMMS 312 explores this premise, blending theory and practice. As a class, we will examine strands of documentary associated with political movements while across the duration of the semester, small student groups will produce mini-documentaries as part of their assessment.

In the analytical component of this course, we begin by looking at the relationship of documentary to social change, defining what we mean by ‘social change’ and ‘documentary’. Then, through the body of the course, we will explore how documentary has engaged with political movements, from revolutionary, Marxist, and anti-fascist documentaries through to contemporary activist and advocacy films, including those addressing feminism, gender identity, indigenous and minority rights, anti-war protest, environmental issues, and climate change. This more theoretical strand will also explore how documentaries have engaged with screen technology given its rapid changes – looking at the invention of the moving image, the introduction of synchronous sound, the advent of video technologies, the impact of digital transformation, the new dominance of streaming as a mode of distribution and the use of transmedia to engage with new audiences. In the practical component of the course, students will learn how to produce, direct and edit documentaries, from reaching out to possible subjects through shooting, lighting, sound recording, conducting interviews, and developing visual coverage, to editing and sound-mixing the final project.

There are three blocks within the course. In the first two weeks, we will engage with theoretical debates and definitions of documentary and social change. In the second block, Week 3-6, we explore key documentary films from the genre's inception until the mid-20C. In the final longest block, Weeks 7-11, we address more contemporary documentaries covering contemporary socialist and New Left movements, feminism and gender, anti-war protest, and the environment. The practical instruction will be woven throughout the semester.

Attendance is critical as theoretical and practical instruction and tasks will be interspersed across the three hours and the latter requires group discussion and presentations.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: 60 points at Stage II in BA or BC courses

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

Analyse the history of documentary and its relationship to social change. (Capability 1, 2 and 6)
Communicate, consult and collaborate as part of the production of your mini-documentaries. (Capability 3, 4 and 5)
Create a mini-documentary as part of your assessment. (Capability 1, 2, 3 and 4)
Demonstrate an understanding of of the modes and functions of the documentary. (Capability 1, 2 and 4)

Assessments

Assessment Type	Percentage	Classification
Essay	30%	Individual Coursework
Test	30%	Individual Coursework
Practical	40%	Group & Individual Coursework
3 types	100%

Next offered

S2, 2023

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15-point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in.

For this course, you can expect 2 hours of lectures, a one-hour workshop, 4 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 3 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation.

Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

This course is not available for delivery to students studying remotely outside NZ in 2022.

Attendance is expected to receive credit for components of the course.

The course will not include live online events.

The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

All reading materials are included in a weekly Reading list. There are also lists of the complete films that will be excerpted within the lectures, but that students are encouraged to watch in their entirety. There will be additional readings, documents, powerpoints, and videos pertaining to the 'production pedagogy' component of this class in the weekly Modules.

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

This is the second time this course has been taught, and generally, the students from 2021 liked the course. Some felt the academic content was too dense and too historical. They all liked the production component and did very well in their mini-docs despite problems arising from lockdown.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Class Representatives

Class representatives are students tasked with representing student issues to departments, faculties, and the wider university. If you have a complaint about this course, please contact your class rep who will know how to raise it in the right channels. See your departmental noticeboard for contact details for your class reps.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Well-being always comes first
We all go through tough times during the semester, or see our friends struggling. There is lots of help out there - for more information, look at this Canvas page https://canvas.auckland.ac.nz/courses/33894, which has links to various support services in the University and the wider community.

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption, we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and course assessment continues to meet the principles of the University’s assessment policy. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator/director, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the university website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course students may be asked to submit coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. In exceptional circumstances changes to elements of this course may be necessary at short notice. Students enrolled in this course will be informed of any such changes and the reasons for them, as soon as possible, through Canvas.

Capability 1:	Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2:	Critical Thinking
Capability 3:	Solution Seeking
Capability 4:	Communication and Engagement
Capability 5:	Independence and Integrity
Capability 6:	Social and Environmental Responsibilities

COMMS 312 : Documentary and Social Change

Arts

2022 Semester Two (1225) (15 POINTS)