The flight of Icarus : on the geopolitical resonances of documentary film

This paper considers how documentary films have the potential to influence geopolitics. Developing the concept of geopolitical resonances—defined here as the ways in which popular media can determine events and outcomes in global politics—the paper argues that Bryan Fogel’s 2017 documentary Icarus has instrumentally shaped understandings of the Russian doping regime at the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Icarus is considered through the Author-Text-Reader model of film analysis, with an emphasis on the agency of the director, the content of the film, and its influence and reception. More broadly, documentaries are one of suite of oppositional formats that serve as the basis for the reconsideration of the formation of geopolitical cultures and narratives.