Ethnografilm and Filmmaking in STS

• In Event: Transnational STS Media-Making: Producing Films and Videos for Research, Classroom and Beyond

Abstract

Since the establishment of the Ethnografilm festival in Paris in 2014, 4S and the International Social Science Council have played central roles. During the intervening years, the festival has expanded to venues in Africa, South Asia, and the U.S. Yet the question of what constitutes an ethnographic film has never been addressed, nor whether Ethnograflm should actually privilege some forms of filmmaking over others. The festival director discusses this issue in terms of (a) the festival review process; (b) the filmmakers who are invited to the festival; and (c) the response of the audience to the film screenings. The difficulties of establishing the boundaries of ethnographic film are intimately connected to the project of academic legitimacy for audiovisual media.

Author

• Wesley Shrum, Louisiana State University