Cuadernos de Documentación Multimedia

Introduction to the documentation of video games that manage complex narrative variables to introduce political messages

Adrián Suárez Mouriño — 2024-07-08

Through the graduation of the following four variables typical of the study of complex narratives: restrictiveness, depth, self-awareness and communicability, different subjectivities can be generated, different ways of understanding a digital society as a reflection of the real ones and construct immersions in them that affect as players from a political approach. In this text we address this issue, providing a methodology to document video games with a political context that avoid appearing to be so by grading these aforementioned variables in their favor.

Visual imaginary of Human Rights and digital iconography

Sandra Martorell — 2025-01-17

Human rights were proclaimed in 1948. Since then, a collective imaginary has been forged around this concept. The objectives of this research are, on the one hand, if there is a correlation between the images that make up the visual imaginaries and those offered by Google Images, as the hegemonic image search engine. On the other hand, to analyze these images, to see how the idea of human rights is represented in contemporary times and how digital iconographies contribute to continuing to feed this imaginary. To this end, two working methodologies were combined: the constructed week (Riffe, 1993) and the design of an open questionnaire with a mixed response option (textual or graphic) applied to a group of people. The study concludes that: (1) when we speak of human rights in the abstract and in a general way, we obtain mostly symbolic and graphic images with a positive and hopeful connotation; (2) when we concretize, the images we obtain no longer show ideals of the future, but rather are photographic images, which show us a cruder reality and remind us that there is still much to be done in the area of human rights

The difficulties of research in the social history of cinema: Alba de América (Orduña, 1951)

Fátima Gil Gascón — 2024-07-05

The purpose of this article is to analyze the problems with which research into the social history of cinema must contend eby studying the film Alba de América (Dawn of America) (Orduña, 1951). This movie, which narrates the discovery of America, is considered one of the Regime's leading works of historical propaganda. The academic literature states that it was produced in response to the English film Christopher Columbus (McDonald, 1949) and that important characters such as Carrero Blanco were involved in its production. In order to corroborate these statements and discover omissions existing in terms of the film, we reviewed documentation related to its production. This led to detection of some of the challenges with which all researchers on this topic must grapple: assumption of approaches historically considered to be true, but not confirmed, diverging interests in thematic descriptors of archives, and difficulty in accessing certain collections. Although the research is incomplete, since we were unable to access part of the documentation, the information we found corroborates the need for better and greater access to archives, as well as a more impartial look at Francoist cinematography.

The Biodigital Paradigm in the Universe of Superheroes: Convergence of Technology and Biology in Contemporary Narrative

Marcelo Fraile Narváez — 2024-10-30

At the end of the 20th century, the aesthetic transformation in superhero cinema reflects a transition from a mechanistic approach to a deep integration with the biological, influenced by technological advances and biological discoveries. This transformation redefines the genre, providing new visual and narrative dimensions. Bio-aesthetics, as proposed by Katya Mandoki, offers a theoretical framework to understand this transition, considering aesthetics as a science of sensible knowledge based on the evolution of living beings. This perspective allows us to analyze how sensory and emotional experiences are reflected in the visual narrative of contemporary cinema.

The study examines this evolution through five emblematic cases: "Superman," "Aquaman," "Spider-Man," “Wonder Woman,” and "The Avengers." Each film shows how bio-aesthetics redefines the superhero genre, using biological and technological elements to resonate with our evolutionary sensibilities. Bio-aesthetics also introduces an ethical dimension, inviting us to consider the implications of our interventions in nature. By recognizing the interconnection between biology and aesthetics, superhero films not only reflect scientific and technological advances but also explore their ethical and existential implications, offering a reflection on the impact of biotechnology in our contemporary era.

Disinformation and memetics: replication and mutation of antivaccine arguments in informative content

Cande Sánchez-Olmos — 2024-07-16

Disinformation about vaccination is as old as the origin of the vaccines that emerged at the end of the 18th century, its reach is transnational and it has posed a challenge not only to the information landscape, but also to public health, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. Although the fake news spread by anti-vaccine advocates was disproved during prior epidemics, the old anti-vaccine ideas were resurrected in a hypermedia digital ecosystem that multiplied the replication of disinformation, especially during the pandemic. This paper aims to determine whether there are memetic characteristics in the disinformation disseminated by contemporary anti-vaccine advocates in a sample of disinformation content from both the nineteenth century and the present day. First, the origin of the anti-vaccine movement is documented. Next, formats and means of dissemination of disinformation from its origins to Covid-19 are described. Finally, anti-vaccine arguments from the 19th century are extracted and compared to current ones by applying Dawkins' memetic theory. This study finds that current anti-vaccine ideas contain memetic characteristics of 19th century arguments that have been replicated in fake news, hoaxes, social networks and billboards, resurrecting a disinformation that has eroded the credibility of vaccination. Specifically, the anti-vaccine argument is long-lived, because it persists with similar ideas today, particularly fruitful due to the capacity of replication offered by interactive digital media, but less reliable, because anti-vaccine ideas have mutated adapting to the current social context.

The Spanish Cinema of Journalists from Dictatorship to Democracy: A Comparative Analysis between Franco's Cinema and the Cinema of Transition (1942-1983

Carlos Serrano Martín — 2025-06-16

This paper analyses and compares the cinematographic profile of the Spanish journalist during the dictatorship of Francisco Franco and during the Transition. A content analysis has been carried out on 19 films shot and released between 1942 and 1983. The TRANSLITEME portal, a project open to the continuous incorporation of new works that may be relevant for the cultural study of the Transition, generated by the ‘Transficción’ group of the Government of Aragón, has played an important role in this research.

Analysis and characteristics of program production at TVE Cataluña (1959-2019)

Francesc M. López Chaves — 2024-10-24

This article examines the television genres that have been prominent in the programs produced by TVE Catalonia during its first sixty years of existence (1959-2019). The prevalence of specific genres has shaped the type of programs produced and has come to define and specialize the production of TVE Catalonia, resulting in a recognizable production model that has been maintained for over six decades. The article also aims to illustrate the fluctuations in program production that have occurred during this time, which has been a decisive factor in shaping TVE Catalonia. The data obtained from research on the evolution of program production at TVE Catalonia over the last sixty years is presented, based on a comprehensive analysis of all of its productions for the first time.

Creation, development, exhibition and research of the “Pioneros del cine chaqueño” collection housed in the “Pablo Ducrós Hicken” Film Museum

Franco Passarelli — 2024-10-10

This article seeks to introduce the creation and development of the “Pioneros del Cine Chaqueño” Collection. A collection which is currently being stored at the Museo del Cine Pablo Ducrós Hicken in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Argentina. This valuable collection is mainly made up of audiovisual elements in film format from the 1960’s and 1970’s, all of which were produced by filmmakers from the Chaco Province of Argentina. Approximately forty titles form this collection. These films cover a wide variety of genres including fiction, documentary, animation, experimental cinema and advertisement, among others. These productions, made entirely in the Chaco Province, have been historically excluded from the predominant narratives of Argentine national cinema, which traditionally center around Buenos Aires-based productions. The “Pioneros del Cine Chaqueño” Collection emerged from a research project of the same name, initiated in 2019 in the city of Resistencia, Chaco, under the tutelage of the Instituto de Investigaciones Geohistóricas (IIGHI, CONICET/UNNE). Through this project, more than eighty audiovisual works produced by entirely local production teams were identified and cataloged, although unfortunately more than half of these works have been lost or have not yet been found.

This article seeks to offer a reflection on the collection and its importance, especially considering that its creators Franco Passarelli y Leandro Varela, are also the authors of this work. The research not only documents the genesis and development of the collection, but also highlights the need for research, preservation and dissemination of the audiovisual works in the collection. In this way, it aims to contribute to the historical and audiovisual memory of the Argentine Northeast region and also to help think about new film conservation projects in Argentina.

Educommunication in adolescent students: radio and podcasts as instruments for sexual education

Fidel González-Quiñones — 2024-10-17

Educommunication has become a solid discipline in the training of citizens in the face of the excess generation of media content and whose validity condition generates different disorders in communication ecosystems. This proposal presents results regarding the influence of the use of radio and podcasts as tools for teaching sexual education in young adolescents who attend Higher Secondary Education (EMS) in México, through a mixed-dominant quantitative type of research, based on a non-experimental design, whose analysis of the phenomenon is descriptive and transectional. The data collection comes from a probabilistic sampling of 348 participating subjects from five educational institutions located in a Mexican city with a marked influence of radio as a fundamental medium for content consumption by citizens. The study is divided into three sections: (1) sociodemographic data; (2) perceptions towards the sexual education received in the classroom; and (3) perceptions towards radio and podcasts as sexual education resources. The main findings of the research are oriented towards the high acceptance of the podcast as an effective means of promoting sexual education, above the radio and the training received in the classroom, classifying these options as low impact.