This semester has been an interesting adventure. I've learned a lot about representation of culture, and the misrepresentation that often occurs. When i watch documentaries i now know to ask myself questions about who the people making the film are and what they are trying to convey, how they are going about it, and anything that influences the the decisions they make about their film. I've really liked the interaction we have been able to have as a class, and the lectures we have had have all been very interesting and i know that i will take the things i have learned with me.

As I read Western Images of Africa: Genealogy of an Ideological Formulation, I asked myself how was the western world suppose to get out of our stereotypical thinking of savage Africans living like Tarzan? I also began to get frustrated when i read page after pages of these films that have misrepresented Africa and wanted to know what was the point of saying how these films got it wrong without explaining the right way to represent a nation through film. When i began to read the next section in the book ,Banshing the Exotic: toward a Positive Image?, I felt relieved that the authur would try to answer that question. By reading this I have learned to better question a countries representation in film. I will use this knowledge to make sure that when I try to represent a country I will do my best not to fall into stereotypes and actually present the nation the way it actually is.

Little Gymnasts, Big World

Many documentaries follow athletes as they train and compete in their sports. These documentaries attempt to allow the viewer to grasp an understanding of experiences outside of their own. CNN’s “Pursing the Perfect 10” and “The Romanian Dream” directed by Pim Marks are both documentaries focused on the life of girl gymnasts. These films emphasis the demanding lifestyles of young female gymnastics athletes. Through interviews with the coaches, gymnasts and parents, as well as footage of the gymnasts training and life outside the gym, the documentaries endeavor to convey the demanding lives of these child athletes. By the end of the films however, the variations in the documentaries convince the audience to have opposing feeling about these gymnasts.

For a better understanding of these documentaries a back ground into their subject matter needs to be examined. Both of these films were made at a time in their respective countries when their gymnastics teams were considered the best in the world. “The Romanian Dream” was filmed in 1988. In the years previous to the making of this documentary Nadia Comaneci, Romanian, became a world-renowned gymnast who brought fame to her home country for the first perfect score, a 10.00, in gymnastics history at the 1976 Montreal Olympics (Encyclopedia Americana, 335). This documentary chose to follow the progression of the new generation of Romanian gymnast as they prepared for the up coming Olympics. Likewise, “Pursing the Perfect 10” was created in the years after the success of the “Magnificent Seven,” a group of US Gymnasts that won the team gold medal in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics (Woolum, 287). Similar to the Romanian documentary the CNN film follows the development of US athletes as they try to achieve their Olympic dreams.

“The Romanian Dream” and “Pursing the Perfect 10” take different stances on who they interview. For the most part “The Romanian Dream” interviews the coaches only. Nadia Comaneci, a coach in this documentary, is the only gymnast asked questions about the grueling work ethic Romanian gymnasts display (Marks). The only time the gymnasts were asked a question was at the beginning and end of the film. Both times the question was “who do you want to be when you grow up?” and their answers were the same both times, “Nadia Comaneci” (Marks). Their responses reaffirm their goal of achieving the Romanian Dream. In “Pursing the Perfect 10” gymnasts, parents, and coaches are all interviewed. CNN uses these interviews to allow the individuals involved with the gymnasts’ lives to put into words their struggles to achieve Olympic stardom.

In “Pursuing the Perfect 10” CNN used a journalist to narrate. “The Romanian Dream” also uses a narrator to translate some of the coach’s dialogue into English and to help move the documentary forward. What is different in CNN’s documentary is the use of the narrator to ask questions and investigate issues concerning gymnastics. The narrator urges the audience to consider weather in the training of these child athletes it is healthy for coaches and parents to push them so hard (CNN). The narrator in “The Romanian Dream” only guides the viewers along by explaining aspects of the gymnasts’ lives; he does not attempt to form an opinion on their training routine (Marks).

Attempting to gain a deeper understanding of the gymnastics world, “Pursuing the Perfect 10” endeavors to ask the ‘hard’ questions that frequently concern gymnastics. A need to meet certain physical requirements encourages eating disorders, and pushing a gymnast past their limits can lead to serious injuries (www.usa-gymnastics.org). CNN’s “Pursuing the Perfect 10” tries to shed a negative light on the USA gymnastics competition world by insinuating, through focusing on certain key phrases and footage of injured gymnasts, their gymnastics training leads these children to unnecessary health risks (CNN). On the other side, “The Romanian Dream” does not discuss any of the negative aspects of gymnastics.

Injuries are a major part of gymnastics. “The Romanian Dream” only shows gymnasts falling off the bars or beam a few times at the end of the documentary. In “Pursuing the Perfect 10” CNN spends a lot of time showing the physical injuries held by the gymnasts. For example: the seven year old penalized in her competition for her broken ankle, or the Elite gymnast whose season was over when she broke her ankle (CNN). It is interesting that “The Romanian Dream” ignores these injuries. In the United States in 1998 “nearly 25,500 children and adolescents ages 5 to 14 were treated in hospital emergency rooms for gymnastics-related injuries. Among girls' sports, gymnastics has one of the highest injury rates, increasing with the level of competition”. (Children’s Hospital Boston) It follows that with the high number of gymnast in Romania they would also have many injured gymnasts. However, being injured is not part of the ‘Romanian Dream’ they ignored that aspect of the gymnast training.

When asked how the gymnast felt they had been represented in the documentaries, the athletes themselves had different feelings. Kristina Coccia was one of the many gymnasts filmed in “Pursing the Perfect 10” at her gym, the Allentown Parkettes. Inquired as to how she felt the documentary portrayed her team she replied:

“Parkettes is a great atmosphere to workout. The CNN documentary was taken totally out of content and was not what happens during our practices. Our coaches know when to push us to the max. They never push us to far. They are extremely caring and love each and every one of us. I have been at Parkettes for 10 years, and I don't think I would still be doing gymnastics if it weren't for Parkettes.” (www.kristina-coccia.com).

A Romanian gymnast, the 1999 World Champion Maria Olaru, went through the same process and training as the gymnasts in “The Romanian Dream.” After watching the documentary her reactions was, “yes, it was exactly like this. When I watched it I felt the same emotion I felt when I was six. I relived this. I tried to remember it all, every moment, every minute, every second” (www.intlgymnast.com).

The film techniques used in these documentaries also varied. “The Romanian Dream” used many close-ups and long takes to evoke an emotional connection between the viewer and the gymnasts. These close-ups often framed the girls faces as they stood waiting in line with a look of concentration on their faces in preparation for her next routine; or focused solely on their hands and feet as they performed their skills on the four-inch beam or uneven bars (Marks). In a 1980 study by Hatada, Sakata, and Kusaka in they found that close-ups created a “greater sensation of realism” (Lombard and Ditton). These close-ups focus the viewers’ attention to the perilous routines these gymnast perform everyday. It forces them to realize how much skill is involved in even the easiest of gymnastics moves. In opposition, “Pursuing the Perfect 10” used many quick jump shots to emotionally jar the viewers. To display the physical pounding these gymnasts were going through CNN uses jump cuts of gymnasts falling of the equipment multiple times(CNN). Using this technique they were able to force the viewers to have a small feeling of what it is like for the gymnast to have these hard falls and yet be forced to get back up and attempt the skill again.

Both of these documentaries are openly biased in their point of view. The Romanian Gymnastics Federation wants children to compete in gymnastics and so they naturally try to show gymnastics in a positive light. CNN is a major news outlet and often sensationalizes their stories draw a larger audience. In the end, the documentaries leave the viewers with two vastly different perspectives on the gymnastics world. “The Romanian Dream” and “Pursuing the Perfect 10” use opposing film technique, focus on separate subject matter and interviewees, and use different methods to narrate their documentaries. With “The Romanian Dream” the audience feels that gymnastics is a healthy sport for their little girls, one that will teach them perseverance and hard work. “Pursing the Perfect 10” has the opposite impact, viewers are left feeling that gymnastics takes childhood away and forces them to push themselves past their limits.

















Reference

Children’s Hospital Boston, Sports Injury Statistics. Online. 18 Mar 2008.
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CNN, “Pursuing the Perfect 10”. 2003.

Dir. Pim Marks. “The Romanian Dream”. The Romanian Gymnastics Federation, 1988.

Encyclopedia Americana. : Scholastic Library Publishing, 2005.

Woolum, Janet. Outstanding Women Athletes: Who They Are and How They Influenced Sports in America. : Oryx Press, 1998.

www.intlgymnast.com, "I Dream for Romania to be World Champion Again". 2003. Online. 18 Mar 2008.
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www.kristina-coccia.com, Interview #3. Oct 2004. Online. 18 Mar 2008.
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www.usa-gymnastics.org, Task Force on USA Gymnastics Response to the Female Athlete Triad. Sep 1995. Online. 18 Mar 2008.
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Fast, Cheap, & Out of Control
Directed by Errol Morris, “Fast Cheap, & Out of Control” was released in 1997. The premise of the documentary is to reveal how the line between genius and madness exist balanced on a thin ledge, easily swayed either way. The four “geniuses” include: Dave Hoover a lion tamer, George Mendonça a topiary gardener, Ray Mendez a mole-rat expert, and Rodney Brooks a robot scientist. Although each of their jobs deal with different expertise, “Fact, Cheap, & Out of Control” exposes how they are all connected through their passion for their work. The following paragraphs apply semiotic and discourse analysis to evaluate the effectiveness of the images and dialogue utilized throughout the documentary.
The design of the documentary intersperses each interviewed genius’ voices over images of circuses, topiary gardens, mole-rats, and robots. As these images are displayed, each man introduces himself and the audience uses these images to connect with the geniuses. For example, as the animal tamer Dave Hoover describes his life in the circus, footage of his work with the lions plays on the screen. Not only does this allow the audience to hear the animal tamer explain his experiences in the cage, but the images of the lions roaring and growling evoke a sense of fear so the audience understands what he goes through while in the cage. By both hearing and seeing the danger invoked in his career Morris re-enforces the madness involved in the lion tamer’s job. Throughout the documentary, the geniuses words are also used to voiced over the other men’s’ work. By overlapping in this way, the audience sees a surprising similarity between their passions. One would not usually believe that a mole-rat expert and a robot scientist would have anything in common, but as Rodney Brooks explains the behavior of robots over footage of mole-rats, the correlation is unexpectedly obvious.
The appearances of the geniuses are all stereotypical. Morris uses these stereotypes to help perpetuate the viewers’ inclinations to believe that these geniuses are walking a thin line between brilliance and insanity. Ray Mendez, the mole-rat expert, wears a plaid button up shirt and a bowtie with yellow and blue tie-dye. The stereotypical image of a misfit geek is exemplified with Mendez’s attire. Rodney Brooks with his long frizzy hair is a stereotypical indication to the audience that this man cares more about his robots then his personal life. The appearance of the lion tamer is also the classical image- chair and all. He wears elephant pants and a simple cargo shirt in his interview. As for the topiary gardener, he wears heavy-duty work overalls. Combined with his age, the older man embodies the American ideal of one who lives for his job.
Errol Morris’ use of framing in “Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control,” strengthens the premise of the documentary. When the mole-rat expert discusses his love for his study, Morris frames only Mendez’s eyes as they bulge out. In today’s society this usually indicates someone who is loosing control, and over zealous in their pursuits. Morris’ emphasis on Mendez’s eyes forces the audience to re-evaluate their judgment on the sanity of the genesis. The topiary gardener, George Mendonça, tells tales of his time in his garden and how much love and devotion he places in each of his animals. His sole excitement is creating these beautiful bushes and caring for them. In one particular shot Morris frames Mendonça with his shears in front rhythmically cutting his garden, with a content look on his face. The director does this to reveal to the audience the peaceful life that Mendonça leads. Not only does the audience now hear of his love for his work, but also they can see the look on his face and deduct for themselves passion he holds for his topiary garden.
Older films are used by Morris to validate his claims that the geniuses are on the verge of being “Out of Control.” He uses reels of a murderous robot, an adventurous lion tamer, and chaotic circus to generate the feeling of uncontrollable disarray. Dave Hoover depicts a story of rampaging lions, while images of the robot attacking a girl and a man coming to defend her- using a chair like a lion tamer does- are displayed on the screen. While Brooks is discussing his latest study of how machines react to each other when they are not programmed to know what the other machines are doing. but set with a common task, images of mole-rats interacting with each other like the description of the robots plays. And finally when all of these stories are at their peak and George Mendonça describes how a storm took off the head of his giraffe in his garden, and Brooks images a time when robots are doing every little thing that humans can imagine, Morris uses images of a chaotic circus to intensify the geniuses stories.
By overlapping the interviews, using stereotypes to his advantage, framing the scenes to skewed perceptions, and using old films to dramatize the events, Errol Morris’s documentary is very convincing. “Fast, Cheap, and Out of Control” expertly uses all aspects of the documentary to persuade the audience into believing all four geniuses are passionate about their work, and yet may at any moment, cross the line into madness.

Last week we talked about representation of different cultures, and how we as outsiders will pick up on everyday mundane things about someone elses culture, and comment on it. Such as the 1000 barefoot monks who walked through the streets of Burma. We were asked why such an emphasis was placed on the fact that they were barefoot, I can't answer that but it has made me think of other such similar circumstances where someone, or someone's culture has been sensationalized for outsiders.

What came to mind for me was the recent controversy that Abe Lincoln might be gay because he slept in the same bed as Joshua Speed. What people fail to realize is that for this time period, it was common for two men to sleep together in the same bed, and it was not looked down upon in anyway. If two men showed affection for each other, it was only because they cared for each other. It is only todays stigmas on homosexuality, that we look back on history and place such terms on people.

I realize now that not only do people misrepresent other cultures, but they have a tendency to misrepresent their own culture as well.