Department of Film & Screen Media

Dr Stefano Odorico (Technological University of the Shannon, Limerick)

Monday 10 October 2022, 4.00 p.m.

Film & Screen Media Auditorium, Kane Building B10B (Basement)

Polyphonic Documentary is a research project initiated by Dr Judith Aston and Dr Stefano Odorico which has developed into a working group composed of currently over 70 people across several continents. This group is exploring the potential of i-docs (interactive documentaries) to create non-linear and interactive means through which to promote intercultural dialogue and exchange. While polyphony can be clearly found across a number of documentary forms, we are mainly interested in reframing earlier debates within i-docs around narrative/non-narrative/anti-narrative and its relationship to database aesthetics. This paper will present aspects of the theoretical framework and methodologies developed within the polyphonic documentary working group, including carnival, heteroglossia and aesthetics. Furthermore, as part of this, it will look at the interactive documentary Question Bridge as a case study which has inspired our method. To conclude, this paper will show how we have used the interactive authoring tools Korsakow and Stornaway to develop our own interactive meta documentary on polyphony.