This blog post examines how the film ‘Urga’ delicately reveals the authenticity of ethnographic life while utilizing the dramatic film format, exploring its aesthetic and cultural significance.
Introduction
Every film deals with humanity, and the better the film, the deeper its understanding of human nature. In this sense, the medium of film inherently possesses certain ethnographic characteristics. However, this characteristic alone does not suffice to label all films as ethnographic cinema. Nevertheless, it is also difficult to view the realm we can call ethnographic cinema as being limited solely to documentary records that supplement academic ethnography. If ethnographic film can be defined as a genre, it would encompass films that consistently reveal strong ethnographic tendencies within their inherent nature of transformation, hybridization with other genres, and evolution. This paper explores this potential of ethnographic film and examines Nikita Mikhalkov’s film ‘Urga’ as an example.
Ethnographic Film
Ethnographic Film in the Strict Sense
In the strict sense, ethnographic film refers to supplementary visual materials based on academic results—such as theses or monographs—conducted and researched by anthropologists. These visual records are filmed directly by the anthropologist, meaning that what we can call ethnographic film would be limited to materials used in university lecture halls or research laboratories. Rather, such materials might be more appropriately termed ‘ethnographic visual materials’. However, even considering ‘Nanook of the North’, known as a representative ethnographic film, one cannot definitively assert that it was necessarily produced solely by an anthropologist. Robert Flaherty was not a professional anthropologist, and even if we view him as an explorer with anthropological inclinations, this work was not fundamentally produced as a specialized research project. Furthermore, when we consider ‘The Arrival of a Train,’ which we now evaluate as having the character of historical documentation, there is also no basis to assert it lacks ethnographic characteristics. The same applies to ‘Workers Leaving the Factory,’ filmed by a pair of European inventor brothers.
Ethnographic Film and Documentary
One common misconception about ethnographic film is confusing it with documentary. While the two genres are not identical, they are also not mutually exclusive. Because documentary is a genre familiar to the general public, ethnographic film is often mistakenly understood as a documentary addressing a specific subject. This misunderstanding leads to the distortion that ethnographic film is a genre demanding only unmanipulated, truthful records like documentary. However, ethnographic film is not about recording uncontrolled reality as-is; it is a medium for gaining deeper understanding of a subject under specific objectives. Therefore, ethnographic film may recreate past customs, utilize scripts, or introduce devices for visual effect. The reason ‘Nanook of the North’ exists in its current form is that intentional filming occurred during the reconstruction process after the original footage was lost. Sets were also used, such as constructing a half igloo larger than life to better show the interior.
Essentially, ethnographic film does not simply record and edit something currently happening. Instead, it constructs its imagery by selecting and filming scenes according to a pre-set direction derived from research findings. Just as a scientist selects specimens to derive results, or a historian narrates based on facts uncovered even if not witnessed firsthand, the imagery in ethnographic film cannot be easily dismissed as distortion or fiction in this sense.
Ethnographic Film and Narrative Film
The characteristic of ethnographic film—selection and direction for more effective understanding—enables its combination with narrative film. As seen in the comparison with documentary film, ethnographic film and narrative film cannot be viewed solely as mutually exclusive. The issue lies in how faithfully the ethnographic characteristics are presented within the content and form, even when adopting the format of a feature film. For example, Jean-Jacques Annaud’s film ‘Quest for Fire’ is a thoroughly staged feature film, yet it can be classified as an ethnographic film about primates because it addresses fundamental human issues and achieves authenticity through actor training and historical research. From this perspective, if the premise is to place humanity at the center, even records of animals can fully become part of ethnographic film. A prime example is ‘The Baboons of Gombe Stream,’ which deals with the power dynamics among chimpanzees studied by Jane Goodall.
Thus, the subject ethnographic film must address is the specific cultural and anthropological behaviors shared by a group, a fact confirmed by the titles of numerous works: “Song of Ceylon,” “The Sweet Potato of the Dani,” “Kaba’s Childhood,” “The Wedding of Palo,” and others. However, the subject need not necessarily manifest as collective behavior. Even a single family or individual, as in ‘Nanook of the North’ or ‘The Bushmen,’ or a traditional motif like those studied by Lévi-Strauss in ‘Tristes Tropiques,’ can represent ethnographic behavior and thus become the subject of ethnographic film.
Urga as Ethnographic Film
Urga is unmistakably a dramatic film. It possesses a screenplay, and the director’s intent is repeatedly evident in its fantastical scenes and plot. Yet its ethnographic qualities demonstrate not only that dramatic films can serve as ethnographic reference material, but also that ethnographic films can achieve aesthetic success through dramatic techniques.
The film depicts the life of a nomadic family against the backdrop of the Mongolian steppe. The vast steppe landscape and the self-sufficient lifestyle of raising sheep are realistically portrayed throughout the film. The film appears ethnographic because its entire structure is centered on Mongolian life, employing numerous devices to effectively portray their existence. While dramatic elements pertain to the composition of events, the lifestyles and customs exhibited by the characters are extensions of reality. This stems less from the director’s intent and more from the essential ethnographic foundation required to express this subject matter.
Comparing Urga and Nanook of the North
Comparing it to the ethnographic film Nanook of the North makes Urga’s ethnographic elements even clearer. Both films share a genre-based plot structure: the protagonists are family units, and they share similarities in their residential and lifestyle structures as nomads and Eskimos. Both works depict self-sufficient structures, family-based survival methods, and encounters with modern civilization—elements that form the archetype of ethnographic cinema.
The correspondence between the cultural and lifestyle elements shared by the two films is clearly evident in several aspects. In ‘Nanook of the North,’ the characters encounter civilization through a phonograph, while in ‘Urga,’ the protagonist experiences civilization by sightseeing in the city. Regarding hunting, ‘Nanook of the North’ captures seals for meat and skins, while ‘Urga’ hunts sheep to achieve the same purpose. Their means of transportation are a boat and horses, respectively, and the films’ backdrops contrast: rugged glacial terrain versus the vast Mongolian steppe. In terms of movement, ‘Nanook of the North’ centers on the journey to the river, while ‘Urga’ depicts the journey towards China. Regarding customs, ‘Nanook of the North’ shows reproduction, child-rearing, and canoe-making, whereas ‘Urga’ reveals bird burial, child-rearing, and the custom of using the tool called Urga. In production processes, ‘Nanook of the North’ emphasizes scenes of making leather shoes, while ‘Urga’ highlights leather tanning. Regarding livestock, the former features sled dogs, while the latter depicts sheep herding culture alongside horses and dogs. Housing contrasts between igloos and gers, and both films center their narratives around the head of the household. Thus, both films demonstrate that ethnographic cinema shares typical structural and cultural elements through symmetrical composition. These elements should be viewed as pre-planned shooting lists, highlighting their distinction from documentary while revealing similarities with narrative film.
Urga’s Dramatic Elements
Differences between the two films also exist, primarily stemming from technical aspects. While ‘Nanook of the North’ employs somewhat verbose narration, ‘Urga’ places greater emphasis on traditional music, natural sounds created by climate change, and plot construction. This use of dramatic elements signifies that ethnographic films and narrative films can blend at the genre level, demonstrating that such devices can actually reveal ethnographic characteristics more effectively.
Sergei, the outsider appearing in ‘Urga’, plays a pivotal role in maximizing these ethnographic devices. His arrival divides the film into two distinct halves. The first half naturally reveals the daily customs of Mongolian nomads—their dwellings, family structures, subsistence systems, crafts, meals, and even their sexual practices. This structure holds exemplary significance in showing members of diverse ages and genders coexisting within a single family. The latter half reveals their methods of hosting guests, reactions to Chinese and Soviet civilizations, their spiritual world expressed through fantasy, friendships, and even the current social situation in Mongolia. This dramatic structure greatly aids in understanding the nomadic life in multiple layers through visual and situational shifts.
Other Films
Films that are dramatic works yet possess strong ethnographic characteristics—that is, works that could be called ethnographic films if overly strict criteria are not applied—are not numerous but can be found in several cases. While some capture familiar cities or American society from a unique perspective, the background is often a region that is politically or economically barren or rife with conflict, due to the nature of ethnography. Recent examples include the works of director Bahman Ghobadi, which deal with the Kurdish people. ‘Turtles Can Fly’ portrays the lives of Kurdish boys amidst war, while ‘Time of the Wild Horses’ depicts the reality of Kurds surviving by smuggling goods across border regions. While both films contain dramatic elements, if these serve as devices to reveal ethnographic characteristics, they can be fully evaluated as ethnographic films. Above all, these films are vividly shot depictions of current reality. Their characters and events are not staged fiction but representations and reconstructions of reality, giving them ethnographic significance.
Conclusion
Thus far, we have examined the genre potential of ethnographic film and explored ‘Urga’ as an example. The active incorporation of dramatic elements into ethnographic film should not be dismissed as merely turning it into a narrative feature; rather, it should be understood as an extension of the interpretive functions traditionally performed by narration and editing in early ethnographic film. This expansion enables more natural and effective expression, allowing ethnographic film to evolve beyond its original research constraints and open a path to enjoying film as an art form. Consequently, ethnographic film can be expected to continue expanding as both an academic supplement and an independent film genre with its own distinct aesthetics.
