In order for authoritarian regimes to gain and maintain power, they must have some level of popular support. In this video we take a deeper dive into the strategies of authoritarian power grabs, such as surveillance, propaganda, and regressive gender policing and teach you how to recognize a “backsliding democracy” that’s no longer truly democratic. We also outline the ways everyday citizens can resist and protest, and address how the methods of cultural anthropology and forensic anthropology can play an important role in prosecuting war crimes and taking steps towards truth and reconciliation.

In discussions about these uncertain political times, you may have heard a number of key terms: Fascism. Totalitarianism. Authoritarianism. We'll explore the historical roots of these words and ideas with help from 20th century thinkers such as Theodor Adorno, Hannah Arendt, and Robert J. Lifton as they grappled with the authoritarian governments of Hitler, Mussolini, and others. We’ll also turn to anthropology to help us understand the dynamics of authoritarianism, including Jason Lugerr’s theory of “everyday authoritarianism” and Alex Hinton’s theory of “micrototalitarianism”. Plus answer questions like, do some people have a fascist personality, and are gladiator gyms totalitarian?

Ethical considerations in ethnographic filmmaking go beyond informed consent. An ethics of representation ensures your editing provides a fair and faithful account of your participants; reflexivity ensures transparency about the filmmaker’s own positionality and the impact of offscreen relationships and events. An ethics of intervention determines when to simply document dangers and struggles and when to step in. Anthropologist and filmmaker Robert Lemelson illustrates these ideas through his own work and case studies of NOVA’s infamous documentary Warriors of the Amazon and Kevin Carter’s Pulitzer Prize winning photograph The Vulture and the Little Girl.

Part of what sets ethnographic film apart from other forms of documentary is its code of ethics. In all circumstances, but especially when film participants have experienced violence, danger, or trauma, care must be taken to protect them from potential harm. In this video, anthropologist Robert Lemelson reflects on ethical situations in his own filmmaking and fieldwork to outline steps filmmakers can take, such as adhering to a process of informed consent to participation, representation, and distribution including reviewing potential harms with participants and screening rough cuts for them. Intervention, unintended consequences, and the American Anthropological Association ethical guidelines are also discussed.

Ethnographic filmmakers have choices when creating a film out of raw footage. Anthropologist and ethnographic filmmaker Rob Lemelson outlines some priorities that might guide filmmakers, such as holism and narrative storytelling, along with some editing strategies that can be used to create a compelling film such as juxtaposition, accumulation, voice-over narration, and title cards. This video also addresses options to create a visual style for a film such as archival footage, stock footage,original graphics, diegetic and non-diegetic sound, and a soundtrack. Some experimentation with Lemelson’s own raw footage illustrates the impact of different sound elements.

Let’s get technical, technical! This video by anthropologist Robert Lemelson elaborates on ethnographic film production–the part of filmmaking where you are actually in the field recording footage. Watch to get information on different kinds of cameras, such as phone cameras, lightweight cinematic cameras, gopro and drones and other equipment like tripods, gimbals, shoulder rigs, mics, and lighting kits, the different kinds of footage you can shoot. You’ll also learn how to use the standard ethnographic methods of observation, participant observation, and interviewing in your films, and become aware of factors that might impact your interviews such as gender, social group, cultural conventions of communication, and physical surroundings.

What is an ethnographic film? Would you ever want to watch one? You will after watching this video, where anthropologist Robert Lemelson tracks the history of anthropology’s debatably most underrated and misunderstood subfield. As you learn more about the past and present of visual anthropology, you’ll see clips from classic works of ethnographic film and documentary including Nanook of the North, Trance and Dance in Bali, and The Ax Fight. You’ll also meet some of the most influential early filmmakers in the field such as Zora Neale Hurston, Jean Rouch, John Marshall, Robert Gardner, and Tim Asch.

Is cannibalism super rare–or crossculturally quite common? It depends on who you ask. From historical reports of cannibalism during colonial conquest all the way up to contemporary trends of placenta encapsulation, what counts as cannibalism and who is seen as a cannibal is shaped by, and shapes, discourses about self and other. In this video, anthropologist Robert Lemelson digs into meaty debates about cannibalism and the way they reveal ethnocentric and racist biases. Along the way we’ll address Marvin Harris’s protein deficiency hypothesis, Maggie Kilgour’s idea of the cultural cannibalism of colonialism, The Man Eating Myth, and Francis Nyamnjoh’s reading of societal cannibalism.

Eating other people is the ultimate taboo… or is it? We now know many different creatures eat their own, including humans–and it's not as rare as you’d think. Join anthropologist Robert Lemelson on a tour of “anthropophagy,” otherwise known as human cannibalism. You’ll learn about the different categories of cannibalism, such as survival cannibalism, pathological cannibalism, and institutional cannibalism. You’ll encounter both notorious historical instances of humans eating other humans, such as Jamestown Jane and Wendigo psychosis, and the way different cultures, such as the ancient Aztecs, Celts, and the Korowai, have rationalized such consumption in the context of religion, warfare, and self-defense.

You know what a cult is, and you’d never get tricked into joining one…right? In this video, anthropologist Rob Lemelson debunks common myths and misunderstandings about cults to impart the nuances of marginal religious groups and new religious movements (NRMs). While notorious destructive cults such as the People’s Temple, led by Jim Jones, and Aum Shinrikyo, led by Shoko Asuhara, share certain psychological and social dynamics, not all groups known as cults are destructive–and the differences between cults and organized religions may be less obvious than they seem. Anthropologists explain how the cult concept has been used to police the racialized and politicized boundaries of legitimate religion and social action, while reinforcing the questionable idea that mainstream religion and political power as a source of moral goodness, benevolence, and protection.

We all have a relative or friend who spouts some kooky ideas, but what are conspiracy theories really all about? Let anthropologist Rob Lemelson untangle the psychological dynamics, cultural context, and social function of extreme beliefs. In this video he’ll define conspiracy theories, outline the cultural conditions that tend to give rise to them, trace similarities in conspiracy theories throughout history, from early modern European witch hunts to Q’Anon, and explain why conspiracy theories might be part and parcel of the universally human drive toward storytelling and meaning making.

Are human beings made to do drugs? Anthropologist Rob Lemelson will take you on a journey exploring the normative use of substances in human societies around the world and over centuries. Discover the cultural histories of substances like cannabis, cocaine, heroin, psychedelics, alcohol, caffeine and tobacco and learn how different peoples have used them to enhance daily function, heighten festivity, mark ritual–and even heal their bodies and minds. Plus, you can learn about early anthropological interest in psychedelics–did Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson really trip?

Are human beings made to do drugs? Anthropologist Rob Lemelson will take you on a journey exploring the normative use of substances in human societies around the world and over centuries. Discover the cultural histories of substances like cannabis, cocaine, heroin, psychedelics, alcohol, caffeine and tobacco and learn how different peoples have used them to enhance daily function, heighten festivity, mark ritual–and even heal their bodies and minds. Plus, you can learn about early anthropological interest in psychedelics–did Margaret Mead and Gregory Bateson really trip?

Don’t all people seek physical comfort, safety, and pleasure? Why would anybody purposely harm their own bodies? Join anthropologist Robert Lemelson to explore how physical pain, deprivation, and self-harm might make someone feel more culturally alive. From the ritual body modification of initiation and coming of age rites to the annual peak religious experience of the Thaipusam festival in South and Southeast Asia, from the Sokushinbutu, or living Buddha’s of Japan, to eating disorder clinics in the urban United States, ethnographic examples will illuminate how physical pain and discomfort can becomes a culturally meaningful experience.

How do social scientists understand individuals and groups that reject or are rejected by societal norms? Anthropologist Rob Lemelson will explain the history of thought on deviance in the field going back to Ruth Benedict’s theory of culture and personality. Then he’ll outline the methods used in anthropology today, including clinical anthropology, person centered anthropology, and neuroanthropology.

What is deviance? Is it the symptom of a psychological disorder or is it a social process? How can deviance be culturally relative? In this video, anthropologist Robert Lemelson provides an anthropological definition of deviance and introduces the ideas that social scientists have used for decades to understand the experience of living, purposefully or by no act of your own, outside shared cultural norms and ideals. We’ll explore criminal subcultures and the experience of stigma.

AnthroDorphins is an anthropology video series that eases the pain and elevates the pleasure of learning anthropology by making key ideas accessible and engaging. From funeral rites to extreme sports, ghost marriage to gender identity, AnthroDorphins fuels your spark of curiosity about cultures around the world and brings concepts alive through ethnographic film, animation, and expert insights. Created and led by Rob Lemelson, a UCLA anthropologist and ethnographic filmmaker with decades of experience in the classroom and the field, AnthroDorphins videos are perfect for teachers looking to invigorate their lectures, students looking to reinforce their learning, and anyone interested in anthropology.

In “Part 1: Ethnographic Methods” you’ll get a behind the scenes look at my personal experience doing ethnographic research in Indonesia over the past 30 years. You’ll also explore the work of other anthropologists. Part 1 will give a brief history of “Ethnographic Methods” and illustrate anthropology as it’s done in the field today.

“Part 2: Ethnographic Relationships and Presentation” will address the fundamentally social nature of fieldwork and introduce innovative ways of presenting research. Together, the videos will give you a foundational understanding of what ethnography entails.

Kinship is one of the first topics anthropologists studied over 150 years ago. While the term may seem quaint, issues of intimate relationships never get old. “Part 1: Kinship Structures” outlines different ways of structuring family through marriage.