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Documentary Filmmaking and Multilingualism – A Dialogue on Practice: Interview with Dr Alastair Cole, Senior Lecturer in Film Practice, Newcastle University, UK

Lookup NU author(s): Dr Alastair Cole

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0).

Abstract

This interview explores Alastair Cole’s multilingual documentary filmmaking as a research practicethat contributes to minority language rights, revitalisation, and ethnopolitical visibility. It arguesthat documentary cinema offers unique insights into linguistic hierarchies, code-switching, and thelived effects of language policy. Case studies such as Colours of the Alphabet and Iorram demonstratehow film engages with colonial legacies, educational systems, and cultural preservation. The articlealso highlights emerging digital environments – VOD platforms, social media video, and generativeAI – that expand access to multilingual subtitling and circulation, while raising ethical questionsaround representation and translation. It concludes that documentary cinema can function as bothresearch method and advocacy tool, supporting minority language communities and informingpolicy discourse.

Publication metadata

Author(s): Cole A, Sills-Jones D

Publication type: Article

Publication status: Published

Journal: Journal on Ethnopolitics and Minority Issues in Europe

Year: 2026

Volume: 25

Issue: 2

Pages: 90-101

Online publication date: 06/07/2026

Acceptance date: 01/07/2026

Date deposited: 31/08/2026

ISSN (electronic): 1617-5247

Publisher: European Centre for Minority Issues

URL: https://doi.org/10.53779/DASJ0906

DOI: 10.53779/DASJ0906

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