Animating Embodied Memories: An Inquiry into Medium-Specificity of Animation in Greatness Code (2020)

Abstract

Although studies have elucidated the meaning-making mechanisms of animated embodiment within film study paradigms, its medium-specificity compared to live-action imagery remains insufficiently examined. Drawing on theoretical frameworks from film phenomenology, cognitive semantics and cognitive neuroscience, this study employs the methodology of constitutive interpretation to explore how animation enhances the mechanisms of sense-making in Greatness Code (Chopra, 2020), the sports documentary series that represents the embodied memories of seven elite athletes during pivotal moments in their performances through the juxtaposition and superimposition of animated and live-action images. Ultimately, the authors argue that this documentary utilizes several embodied mechanisms, including ‘haptic palimpsest’, ‘elaborate and expanded embodied depiction’, and ‘associative objective mapping’. In these mechanisms, animation demonstrates the following medium-specificity: (1) generation of digital materiality; (2) elaborate tracing abilities and expandability in sensory representation; and (3) constructedness of sensory associations. These qualities transcend the boundaries of sensory expression in Greatness Code’s live-action footage and facilitate the public articulation of hidden embodied knowledge in sports competitions. Crucially, these medium specificities remain significant when juxtaposed with other professional techniques conceptualized in extant research on live-action embodiment, thereby contributing to the expansion of studies of animated embodiment. Meanwhile, this study elucidates the attribute and potential of embodied animation in mediating memory within non-fiction contexts.