ABSTRACT
Cellphilms are an emerging participatory visual research method where participants use cellphone technologies to create short films that respond to a prompt. However, the ethics and aesthetics of sound within cellphilms have been largely ignored within the methodological literature. This chapter outlines the sound characteristics into three themes: youthful cellphilm sound aesthetics, DIY sound qualities as accidental reveals of the cellphilm producers, and sound ethics in cellphilm method. The power of a cellphilm comes in part from the DIY reminders that this is not a highly stylised, commercial media production. We think that one of the most powerful qualities of a cellphilm is in its DIY aesthetics. Not all cellphilms are slick media productions, but some are, perhaps because of the everyday nature of production in spaces like Tiktok. The chapter suggests that deep listening is important in cellphilm production and also in cellphilm screenings.
