Documentary Flimmaking

To achieve their dreams especially young girls are forced to forget about their childhood and act like adults instead. The documentary “52 pro cent”  depicts the hard life of such a young girl dreaming of become a prima ballerina one day. In some like 13 impressive parts, the film brings up a lot of drama, since our “hero” – the Read more →

52 percent  

As the movie progresses, we gradually understand the ambition of a young girl- to be a ballet dancer. Through some rough examinations and trials, we develop expectations of hope and fear. We see her hard work in the  apartment with a lovely cat.

‘If I don’t get accepted’ because ‘i have ugly legs’ shows us the definition and meaning of the Read more →

  SUMMARY

In 52 Percent, the audience follows a girl who strives hard to become a ballerina and works hard to get accepted to an infamous russian ballet academy  where most applicants are rejected.

Link to the online summary!

REFLECTION

What I like about this documentary is that it uses juxtapositions Read more →

I liked the intimate shots of this film which created a unique and immersive perspective of what’s happening, which we wouldn’t have been able to experience in real life.

For me the short documentary delivered a very depressing atmosphere, both through narrative and pictures. This was 

The documentary by Rafal Skalski shows the ambitions and struggles of an aspiring 11 year old ballerina. Wanting to get into a ballet academy, she has to go through a tough evaluation. Skalski and his crew follow her on her journey through preparations, training and eventually a final audition for a spot at the school. The film begins with a group of young ballerinas lining Read more →

First thoughts.

I really liked the way the shots were composed, bringing the story so much more personal with the numerous tight shots. The long duration of each shot really allows the audience to soak into the strong underlying emotions and anxiety of the protagonist and situation even though we do not exactly see it.

Tension runs high even through the interactions Read more →

-to be updated-

This documentary film tells the story of an 11 year old girl, Alla, who struggles with achieving her goal to enter into her dream school and become a professional ballerina. 52 Percent refers to the ideal leg to body ratio, which Alla does not possess. Alla is given a chance of a few months to rectify where she falls Read more →

52 percent was a very powerful film, even for somebody like me who does not know much about ballet dancing. The CU, the focus on facial expressions and the use of sound were what brought this feeling of anxiety and stress to the film. In twenty minutes we manage to develop attachment to the main character. 

19min, directed by Rafal Skalski, 2007. The main character is “Alla”, eleven years old in Russia.

Pacing is great. Don’t have to run along with the story. The duration of the documentary was also good. Didn’t get bored.

In the film, seeing the ballet selection process brought up images in my head of slaves getting their teeth checked, athletes training for some Read more →