THREE TRACKS OF NON-FICTION FILMS

CONSIDER

Image + Audio + Text = Possible Meaning

1) VISUAL TRACK What we SEE on screen

Parts of the visual track

1) Main story being told

2) Can be interrupted by…. Cutaway Archival / found footage Stills

VISUAL TRACK

Main footage created / filmed for movie

Often interview footage of a subject

Can be the filmmaker him or herself

ARCHIVAL FOOTAGE

Primary source photographs

Primary source film

Footage from ANOTHER movie

EXAMPLE….

Interview with a guitar player…

Guitar player talking about his childhood in Chicago

Cutaway to pictures of Chicago (when he was growing up)

Back to player talking about his heroes Cutaway to film of player’s heroes playing

guitar He says he’ll play Close-up on his fingers as he plays.

2) AUDIO TRACK What we hear!

Narration On screen Off screen

“Voice of God” narration

Soundtrack Music in the background

MUSIC

Diegetic Logically heard by someone at the time of

filming

Non-diegetic Sound track Sound effects!

What EFFECTS are created with the music choices?

EXAMPLES

Outfoxed Supersize Me

3) TEXT / GRAPHICS TRACK Overlays of the visual track

Charts Drawings Graphics Subtitles

TEXT

Identify who is talking Title of the person talking Location of a scene

Who IS identified; who is NOT? HOW are they identified (Big BIAS clue!)

BE CAREFUL

Just because a person on screen has a t-shirt with a word on it Not the text track Part of the visual track

HOW MIGHT THE FOLLOWING BE IDENTIFIED WITH A POSITIVE BIAS?

George W. Bush

Michael Jackson

Lady Gaga

Barak Obama

HOW MIGHT THE FOLLOWING BE IDENTIFIED WITH A NEGATIVE BIAS?

George W. Bush

Michael Jackson

Lady Gaga

Barak Obama

CONSIDER

Image + Audio + Text = Possible Meaning