Social network documentary and its aesthetic metamorphosis: reflections from a practice-led research

Abstract

This article employs a practice-led methodology to offer a creative examination of the digital trends, online practices, and shifting aesthetics of political documentary as it migrates in the interstices of social media. At the centre of this research is the production and circulation of Facebook-native microdocumentaries, labelled under the rubric of compact cinematics and radical videos. As a networked platform, Facebook affords opportunities for media experimentation and allows filmmakers to innovate political and sociable contents. I argue that documentaries circulated on Facebook, particularly those with social change outreach, need to undergo an aesthetic adjustment to respond to ongoing ruptures in traditional storytelling and to address the shifting consumption modes of audiences online.