Documentary Filmmaking: Notes on Survey City and the Need for Films that Concern Mass Social Movements

A Media Reflexive Essay

Abstract

This article encapsulates a history of social justice filmmaking in India or South Asia
more broadly with regard to what is being heralded as the Indian documentary wave
since 2021-till date. It asks what role funding institutions and grant-making bodies play
who tend to cater to their audiences more than the instincts of justice that tend to
motivate filmmakers who pursue stories about underrepresented communities or
social justice. The article complicates the discussion on the process of making social
justice films, and delves into the complexity of form and content vs. addressing social
issues, as well as the sociological aspects of a non-fiction film and its production.