Six Primary Styles of Documentary Production

Webster defines documentary as “a movie or television program that tells the facts about actual people and events.” The conventional thinking about documentaries is that they document reality, represent the objective truth and do not include fictional elements. Certainly, these are some of the qualities we expect from journalistically driven current affairs docs made for TV where the editorial impetus is to strive for factual and balanced presentations. Read More

How To Develop An Idea Into A Finished Documentary

Have you ever heard of Robert J. Flaherty?  He’s known as the “father” of documentary filmmaking (“Nanook of the North,” 1922). However, documentaries didn’t truly capture the attention of mainstream audiences until Michael Moore’s “Roger and Me” in 1989. Moore proved that you could make social change while making a living. So, now you’d like to give it a go, right? The management of a documentary timeline begins when you answer a few questions for yourself. Read More.