Documentary Research - Skateistan: To Live And Skate Kabul

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yGoRXuHiVFo

We were introduced to 'Skateistan: To Live And Skate Kabul' in a seminar and I particularly liked this documentary as it showed a group of hopeful young children and teenagers living in a war-stricken Afghanistan. However, the twist to this documentary that caused me to take an interest in it was the optimistic theme throughout the piece; as the children are letting the audience into their lives. We are often associating war-stricken countries such as Afghanistan with violence and war due to the media but we see the children in this documentary spending their free time on skateboards. This hobby is a popular Western activity and connotes a sense of freedom for the children.

The opening scenes of the documentary consist of shots of streets and cars in Afghanistan, with fast clips of someone skateboarding appearing for a couple of seconds. This forewarns the audience that the theme/main subject of the documentary focuses on skateboards. I love how the documentary begins with a variety of landscape shots and the streets of Afghanistan; using imagery of dusty roads and market stalls that are often featured in the news reporting about the war-stricken area. The part I love about this beginning is that we are then presented with a male voice describing the public reactions towards their hobby; as it is a very unexpected hobby usually occurring in Western Cultures.

The theme throughout this documentary is the promotion of the charity that allows these young children to keep hope, through their passion for skateboarding. This passion they strive on despite their conditions is very moving and causes me to empathise with them. In terms of the editing, the scenes that are shown match the monologue from each character; as this gives the audience a visual aid while listening to their personal stories. Another aspect of the documentary that I like are the still shots of the family as it creates a powerfully empathetic emotion, making it impossible to tear yourself away from the film.

The narrative of this documentary begins with a disequilibrium, providing the audience with scenes of a war-stricken environment, with the powerful mise-en-scene such as the goat's head lying on the road. Many of the shots in this documentary are slowed down in order to connote the sympathy that the campaign is trying to achieve, as well as allowing the audience to take in the film. There are also a lot of low angle shots in order to present the audience with images of the skateboards. The 3 main characters of this film was a young boy, young girl and a charity worker and their back stories create an emotional link with the audience.

It is documentaries like this, presenting the audience with a personal subject matter, that I love watching as it opens my eyes to events that I may not have considered yet after viewing, completely change my mind.