Realism

Realism is the depiction of subjects as they appear in everyday life, without embellishment and romanticism, revealing the truth and emphasizing the mediocre. Of course the irony is that it’s very difficult to ever capture the absolute truth. Even without embellishment, a picture is still just one representation, revealing one aspect of a subject and not the whole truth. The neo-realist film movement began in Italy in the 1940s, intending to show the reality of how people were actually living in a dramatic context. The conventions of neo-relist films often involved the use of non-trained actors alongside trained actors, giving the films more authenticity.

Visually, neo-relist films are much in the style of documentaries: quite pared back and minimalist. They were mostly filmed on location, using available light, which added to the naturalistic effect. While the neo-realist movement declined in 1952 with a shift in society, its influences can still be seen in modern cinema. Now, more conventional films are adopting the realist visual techniques, using hand-held camera and simpler techniques and settings in order to create a more authentic environment for the characters.

The 2007 short film Jerrycan from Julius Avery is an example of modern cinema adopting the realist techniques. The visual elements of the film are naturalistic - it was filmed on location using minimal lighting to enhance the stark, bleak reality of the setting. Local children who were inexperienced with acting in films were cast in the main roles. This gave the characters a sense of believability, as if they could be from any small Australian country town.

The camera movement was very fluid and unobtrusive. One memorable scene for me was when the boys are riding around town on their bikes, the camera moving along with them, as though it could be from the perspective of another child riding with them. 

I could appreciate this film for it’s merits, and I can understand how it became a success. However, this is not a film that I particularly enjoyed or was incredibly amazed by. I just felt that once the story had been set up I could see where it was headed and I felt as though it was something that I’d seen and experienced before. Despite this it is a good example of the use of neo-realist techniques in contemporary films, creating an authentic representation of characters from a low socio-economic landscape.