Combined Output Portfolio: The Uprising
- Submitting institution
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University of the West of Scotland
- Unit of assessment
- 34 - Communication, Cultural and Media Studies, Library and Information Management
- Output identifier
- 12853347
- Type
- Q - Digital or visual media
- Publisher
- -
- Month
- December
- Year
- 2014
- URL
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http://beta.uws.io/2020/03/01/ref-practice-based-research-portfolio-peter-snowdon/
- Supplementary information
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- Request cross-referral to
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- Output has been delayed by COVID-19
- No
- COVID-19 affected output statement
- -
- Forensic science
- No
- Criminology
- No
- Interdisciplinary
- No
- Number of additional authors
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0
- Research group(s)
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- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- No
- Additional information
- This combined output portfolio is centred on the practice-based feature documentary output, The Uprising (78 mins 2014) directed by Peter Snowdon. The project emerged from a research practice which combined cutting-edge film practice with innovative theory. This montage film is composed entirely of videos made during 2011-2012 by citizens of Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Libya, Syria and Yemen. The videos are edited together so as to produce a coherent narrative creating an imaginary pan-Arab revolution, told entirely by the original videos themselves, without commentary or contextualisation. The film thus constitutes a clear departure from the way in which most social-media-based documentary features relied on interviews or narration to mediate the extensive use of citizen video for their audiences.
The film was edited over a period of nearly two years, including two extended research stays in Egypt (for a total of three months in the field) during which rough cuts of the film where shared with participants in the Egyptian revolution to garner their reactions and comments. While editing the film, Snowdon also elaborated in parallel an innovative theory of vernacular video rooted in his practice, advancing what was at the time an entirely original argument, namely, that the politics of these videos cannot be understood without reference to their aesthetics.
The portfolio therefore includes three related publications within which Snowdon develops this argument: “The Revolution Will be Uploaded: Vernacular Video and the Arab Spring”, Culture Unbound, (6, 2014, 401-429), “Game over Mubarak”: the Arab Revolutions and the Gamification of Everyday Life”. Fast Capitalism, (11.1, 2014) and “Film!”—The Arab Revolutions and the Filmmaker as Amanuensis”, Visual Anthropology, (29:3, 2016, 263-277)
The Uprising was first made publicly available in December 2014, through Video On Demand distribution with Universciné covering 11 European territories and the film remains available on their platform today.
- Author contribution statement
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- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
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