The High School

ond film after the controversial “Titicut Follies” (1967), made clear that, while he began his career during the great period of American direct cinema in the 1960s, his style is markedly different from that of D.A. Pennebaker, Richard Leacock, and Albert and David Maysles, among others. Wiseman heavily shapes his footage for “High School” through his editing, providing aesthetic shape and structure to the film that is distinctly different from the chronological approach favored by most direct cinema and cinema verité filmmakers. Further, while other observational filmmakers tended to focus on charismatic or special individuals, Wiseman’s films, including “High School,” which was shot in Northeast High School in Philadelphia, examine instead social and governmental institutions.