Birthday Parents and Representation. Ethnography as a Basis for Fictional Film?

Abstract

In this chapter, we discuss the process of disseminating findings and insights from ethnographic studies through fictional films. We base the discussion on the shortfilm Birthday Parents (Director: Savas Boyraz. https://vimeo.com/259692490 password: boyraz. Accessed 13 May 2021, 2018) which was coproduced with the artist Savas Boyraz. The film script was constructed through stories and characters from our ethnographic fieldwork which we combined with elements of fiction. Thus, we call this an ethnographic fiction film. The theme chosen (birthdayparties), its framing, and the various ethical and political considerations we did throughout the process are explored. The theme of the film, celebrating birthday, came to us through our fieldwork, as contested events in the interface between schools, neighborhoods, and families. We consider it as a symbolic ritual, and it became the main theme of the film because it casts light on different aspects of what it means to be a parent today in the welfare state Norway, including on matters of integration, inclusion/exclusion, belonging as well as socio-economic aspects. We aimed with the film to contextualize, recognize, and provide an understanding of different ways of being and doing parenting, and to offer a public space for critical (self)reflection. Drawing on audience reception, we argue that the ethnographic fiction film format opens new possibilities for social critique and ways in which to cast light on societal challenges. Providing one layer of reality, we consider the ethnographic fiction film as a more direct and engaging mode to evoke reflections compared to written text. It provides a tool to present and understand a social issue from different angels, while protecting people involved in the research.