Chapter 10
Documentary, Experimental, and Animated Films
1. A film is a documentary if it
2. Mockumentaries can best be defined as films that
3. Which of the following is NOT a type of documentary film?
4. A “direct-cinema” documentary is one
5. Which of the following is NOT a type of documentary film?
6. In addition to narrative documentaries, documentaries may take non-narrative forms, including
7. The greatest challenge involved in using categorical form in a documentary is the
8. Whereas most documentaries present talking heads in ______, Les Blank’s Gap-Toothed Women makes extensive use of
______.
9. Which of the following is NOT one of the four attributes of rhetorical form in a documentary film?
10. Which of the following is NOT typical of rhetorical form?
11. A significant example of rhetorical documentary form is
12. Which of the following is NOT one of the ways that Pare Lorentz builds viewers’ trust in The River?
13. Railroad Turnbridge, Scorpio Rising, and Ballet mécanique are all examples of
14. One place where the average viewer is likely to be exposed to avant-garde cinema (or at least its influence) is in
15. In addition to narrative form, experimental or avant-garde films may use ______ or ______ form.
16. Ballet mécanique is an example of a(n) ______ film.
17. A Movie by Bruce Conner is a(n)
18. Associational form works most like
19. Which of the following is NOT one of the basic principles typically employed in making an associational film?
20. Which of the following is the best example of an associational film?
21. Animated films are distinguished from live-action ones by the kinds of work done at the ______ stage.
22. In animation, cels are
23. Cheaper animated productions, including some television, use ______ animation, in which only small sections of the
image move from frame to frame.
24. In full animation,
25. Which of the following is NOT one of the three closely related categories of three-dimensional object animation?
26. “3D” computer animation is so named because it
27. Directed by Chuck M. Jones in 1953, ______, with its experimental feel, is considered one of the masterpieces of
American animation.
28. Dimensions of Dialogue, by Czech animator Jan Svankmajer, can best be described as
29. Fact-based films such as Apollo 13, Schindler’s List, and Selma are considered documentaries because they deal with real
events.
30. Although documentaries often record events as they are occurring, sometimes events in a documentary may be staged.
31. Cinéma-vérité or “cinema-truth” is another term for direct-cinema documentary.
32. When a documentary filmmaker wants to make an argument or convince people of something, he or she employs
categorical form.
33. Olympia, Helvetica, and Gap-Toothed Women are examples of documentaries that use categorical form.
34. Mokumentaries pretend to portray real people and are often quite serious.
35. In The River, Pare Lorentz explores a number of balanced viewpoints on his subject, leaving the audience to form their
own conclusions.
36. Experimental films are also known as avant-garde films.
37. By definition, an abstract experimental film does not involve any recognizable objects.
39. Blitz’s Spellbound and Hitchcock’s Spellbound not only share the same film title but are also both considered fictional
films.
40. Films that present strong opinions and make weak arguments without reliable research cannot be considered
documentaries; instead, they are considered fiction.
41. Koyaanisqatsi uses almost no recognizable human speech.
42. Animated documentaries are usually instructional films.
43. Live-action films use continuous filming of an ongoing action in real time, but animation involves creating images one
frame at a time.
44. Who Framed Roger Rabbit was the first film that mixed animation with live action.
45. Create a table that delineates the characteristics of categorical, rhetorical, abstract, and associational formal systems.
Include in the table brief examples of each system.
46. Write a paragraph explaining how we distinguish a documentary using categorical form from one using rhetorical form.
Use specific examples from Film Art, from lectures, or from films shown for the course.
47. Write a paragraph explaining how we distinguish an experimental film using abstract form from one using associational
form. Use specific examples from Film Art, from lectures, or from films shown for the course.
48. Some non-narrative films draw on aspects of narrative form to organize sections or parts. Choose one non-narrative film
that draws on narrative principles. What sort of non-narrative principles organize the overall film? How does it draw on
narrative principles of organization? What purposes are fulfilled by the narrative portions of the film? Point to specific
49. Describe how animation differs from live-action filming. Explain the common types of animation and give examples of
each.
50. How did the animation technique used to make Duck Amuck differ from that used to make Sita Sings the Blues?
What makes each film visually interesting and unique? How do the films reflect the time periods in which they were made?