Exploring Immersion and Detachment in Filmmaking Techniques

This chapter explores the principles of objective realism and direct cinema in filmmaking, focusing on how minimal editing enhances narrative immersion. It examines the challenges of conveying character depth within this observational storytelling approach and connects these techniques to historical film movements.

Transcript

chevron_right

Play full episode

chevron_right

Transcript

Episode notes

There’s a mystery of violence swirling in and amongst the kids these days. Especially boys. What could it be? Snapchat? Video games? Andrew Tate? A hit Netflix series points to issues, and policy. But is it pointing in the right direction?

Today we’ll look at “Adolescence”: the origin story, the strengths and liabilities of its one-take technique, and its deceptively conservative messaging. Should it be shown in Parliament? Schools? Does it tell us much about the kids it is worried about? Does it offload responsibility for misogyny and violence onto ambient internet chaos, when there are so many other causes closer to home? And why, if it is a meditation on violence committed by boys, do we learn so little about the girls who are harmed?

___

Correction: In the episode, Matthew said that Axel Rudakabana was of South Asian descent. He was born in the UK of parents from Rwanda.