Guidelines on Making a Documentary
From LoveToKnow Movies
There are a few guidelines on making a documentary that apply no matter what your subject matter. First, of course, there's preparation. You can't just "go with the flow" and see where the story ends up. In addition to extensive planning ahead, there are some other guidelines to take note of as well. When you're done fitting together all the pieces, you will hopefully have a masterpiece on film that will enlighten a large portion of the population.
The Purpose of a Documentary
Documentaries are meant to be educational and bring a greater understanding of a topic or issue that affects a large portion of the population in some way. It's meant to present the facts of an issue or event by using narration, pictures, and interviews. Choose something you're passionate about, but something that will speak to the public.
Preparation Is Key
Before you even start filming your documentary, you should create an outline. Decide how the sequence of events should be shown in the film, the experts you plan to interview, how they'll fit into your filming schedule, where you'll film, and so forth. This will also help you to determine whether there is enough information about your topic to create a documentary. Watch a few documentaries to really analyze how they're put together and what makes them work. Once you know what you want to include in your own, use the guidelines on making a documentary that you gathered from the ones that you watched (visit the library to check them out and watch them for free) to decide how best to powerfully get your message across.
Planning also includes the gathering of materials you'll need, from cameras to photos and props. Need a film crew? Need money? Find volunteers or donations (of equipment or money) at this stage. Contact schools for volunteers, ask to borrow equipment if you're a student yourself, and speak with local organizations that may be especially interested in seeing your project successfully created and distributed if they would be interested in donating funds in order to help take the financial burden off of your shoulders. Keep in mind that you may need to speak with a lawyer in order to accept money on behalf of this type of project.
Other Guidelines on Making a Documentary
If you have the planning all taken care of but you're still stumped on where all of the money is coming from, check out the International Documentary Association's fiscal sponsorship program.
Once the funding is in place and all of your details are planned out, you can begin recording. Unless you have the help of experienced cameramen or you're an expert yourself, you'll want to experiment ahead of time with the lighting and camera angles. You could also speak with someone with film experience for pointers ahead of time. Consider it more prep work!
Plan your questions out for your interviewees ahead of time, but if they're in the mood to talk, talk, and talk some more, allow some flexibility in the script. You can always edit out the sections you don't need. Make changes as you go, delving further into the details of an event. You never know what you might find.
If they do start to go off-subject, do feel free to gently nudge them back in the right direction by revisiting your list of questions. Chit-chat with them a bit beforehand, too, to make sure that they're comfortable with you and the setup before the filming begins. If you make your interview subject feel like a friend, they'll be much more at ease telling you what you'd like to know with a passion behind their words that speaks for itself.
As for the photos, video clips, and anything else you may wish to use in the documentary, make sure you get permission from whoever holds the rights to the material.
Finally, when it's time to do the editing, set aside plenty of time. Don’t rush it. Since editing equipment can be expensive, use your contacts again to see if you can borrow it from an individual or a school. After the first edit, have friends and family watch and critique it, then edit it again. Watch their reactions as they watch it, as well, so that you can see if your creation is having the intended effects.
A Final Word
Use the general guidelines on making a documentary mixed with your own creativity to create the documentary you're dreaming of.
Learn More
This page has been accessed 728 times. This page was last modified 05:29, 27 February 2009.
© 2006-2009 LoveToKnow Corp.
Print this page
Follow ltk on twitter
Visit us on facebook