Filmmaking in the Academy Special Issue

The Filmmaking Research Network (FRN) began in 2016 to provide an opportunity for filmmaker’s working inside the academy to advance scholarship, understandings and insights about the condition and dimensions of filmmaking as research. The FRN was funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council to share best practice and developed resources between UK and Australian filmmaking communities. It is led by the editors of this special issue, principal investigator Joanna Callaghan and co-investigator Susan Kerrigan. Together they coordinated FRN workshops, conference presentations and screenings in both countries to help build and support debates that pushed at the boundaries of traditional filmmaking and research methods by adopting distinct approaches to professional and critical practices. The FRN website (www.filmmakingresearch.net) contains case studies about filmmaking research which explore REF 2014 impact narratives, research excellence, filmmaking methodologies and film funding sources.

The purpose of this special edition was to present practitioner debates that showcase approaches to filmmaking research written by researchers to stimulate new international debates that will foster a deeper understanding of filmmaking research and how this research can inform and transform work in educational, cultural and industry contexts. Co-authorship was encouraged in order to facilitate debate, encourage interdisciplinary dialogues and produce collaborative research. For a growing field this approach can ensure that claims for knowledge are legitimized. Robust forms of peer review are crucial to advancing filmmaking research, and all filmmaking researchers should be involved in some form of peer review if they care about the development of the field.

This special issue presents practitioner debates that showcase approaches to filmmaking research written by researchers who are keen to contribute new knowledge through their practice, critical enquiry and peer-review. The first paper examines the REF2014 Impact narratives, it is written by ourselves and it looks at how film, video and filmmaking descriptors were used as impact examples for REF2014. There are two papers presented as dialogues containing a discussion between the filmmaker authors which explore production processes and intentions. Nick Higgins and Alastair Cole converse about the re-edit of ‘The Colours of the Alphabet’ while Kim Munro and Paolo Bilbrough discuss the tensions and negotiations experienced in their documentary production. Christopher Brown and Andrew Hill present a critical analysis of their filmic and sonic approaches to practice-as-research in their film ‘Coccolith’ made in the Ramsgate wartime tunnels in Kent. Exploring new applications of participatory video in marginalized communities in South Africa, India and Brazil is Paul Cooke, Stephanie Dennison and William Gould, who report some of their findings from their AHRC research project. Sarah Jones & Steve Dawkins present a critique of empathy-driven filmmaking practice in immersive films while Charlotte Crofts and Alex Nevill, highlight the challenges around the online journal ‘Screenworks’ open peer-reviewing processes.

We are appreciative of the opportunity to present the FRN special issue in the Journal of Media Practice and Education and hope it will contribute to the wider questions around the role of filmmaking research within the academy.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Arts Humanities Research Council [grant number AH/P005713/1].