EXTRA CREDIT: INTEGRATED MEDIA

     I was present during the IMA MFA Program, and it began with a few words from the director of the program. One notable comment made was his comparison of the cafeteria to the experiences program; called the "glass café", he expected a more extravagant room but still made great use of it for a successful event, much like in making projects where one expects everything there, but in the end he or she must do the best with what they have. After thanking people for organizing the event, Marty came to say a few words about public education becoming a burden and how this was once considered right. Jason Fox also spoke of the need for the democratization of documentary tools and appliances; he also mentioned the impact of documentaries as both statistical and as an easier tool for analyzing issues. The man of the hour however, was Brian Winston.
     Winston spoke of a documentary that expressed racism and discrimination through a small interview with a villager in the first few minutes. The shot zoomed into the face of the villager as he complained of pictures of his people taken by foreigners; they would make post cards with his village on it and they would in turn, be bought by their own villagers. He even mentioned how his own son sent him a post card of his own village. In addition, if they played the drums to play the drums, tourists would give them money regardless of their intentions to entertain.
     Documentaries such as these, are meant to educate the masses, but people tend not to care; by people, I mean the mainstream populace, producers, and whoever else may fund these film makers. Because of this, there is an increase of scripting and subjectivity in documentaries, according to Winston. Funding comes when a drama is produced and a "wow incident" occurs that glues people to the screen. Thus, documentaries make little money usually, with exceptions coming from Fahrenheit 911, making $120 million and coming in second place, a Penguin documentary garnering $40 million dollars less. There is a "jaded audience assumption" when it comes to documentaries that make funding come in less.