Overview

Addresses the need to create platforms for survivors of political violence to tell their stories in order to challenge marginalising narratives and as a form of public and personal healing. Filmmaker McLaughlin addresses the need to create platforms for survivors of political violence to tell their stories in order to challenge marginalising narratives and as a form of public and personal healing. Drawing on his experiences directing films in Ireland, Haiti, Brazil and South Africa, McLaughlin reflects on the potential of documentary film to provide a platform for those who have experienced political violence to challenge dominant narratives that marginalises them, and that offers potential for personal and public healing. Using participatory methodologies, each case study analyses conditions of production, political context, participatory potential, and impact of the films on both survivors and the general public. Challenges will be addressed and lessons suggested for similar projects in the areas of documentary film, transitional justice, participatory ethnography and political activism.

Full Product Details

9781839988691

Table of Contents

Reviews

“McLaughlin radically listens to stories of trauma most people do not want to hear. His exploration into these liminal spaces is an extensive study on participant-led mitigation of colonial violence and documentary hierarchy. It occupies a risky territory, between governments, terrorists, and political waves with innocent people at its core.” —Soumyaa Behrens, Director, Documentary Film Institute, Faculty, School of Cinema, San Francisco State University, USA. “This timely book is valuable in its discussion of ethical issues and subject participation in documentary films where survivors of violence and trauma, generally excluded from public discourse, return to the locations of their traumatic experiences. The book challenges the notion of a one-size-fits-all ethical protocol for subject trust and collaboration.” —Dr Jill Daniels, Senior Lecturer Film, University of East London, UK.

Author Information

Cahal McLaughlin is professor of film studies at Queen's University Belfast and director of the Prisons Memory Archive. He sits on the editorial board of the Journal of Media Practice.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available