Succeeding as a Documentary Filmmaker: A Guide to the Professional World

Afterword

201 Afterword OCCASIONALLY WHILE GIVING SOME documentary courses, I’ve had to give exams. Apart from the usual questions on Robert Flaherty, cinema verité, and whether Leni Riefenstahl was an artist or Hitler propagandist , I usually throw in one other: “What is the difference between feature films and documentary?” Most of the answers follow the same pattern. Feature films are fiction, done in studios, with actors, and made for strict entertainment and for profit. Documentaries deal with real life, don’t use actors, go in for interviews, use archives extensively, and are not shot in the studios. A few refine their answers to include a discussion of faking in documentaries, the nature of docudrama, whether documentary reaches a higher plane of truth than features, and whether Michael Moore is over the top. What interests me most, however, is when the students start discussing how documentary purpose differs from features. “Documentary is there to inform, to educate, even to act as a rabble-rouser,” one enthusiast wrote. And, of course, she was right! In this book, I’ve generally refrained from discussing documentary objectives, as my purpose has been to write a short, down-to-earth guide for survival in the professional world. Yet, I know in the end, however practical the target of this book, documentary goals must be mentioned because we do believe in change, yes, we do believe in the power of documentary , and, yes, we do believe we have to bear witness. When I was researching this book, many friends replied, often at length, to my queries. As I read and reread their responses, one set of observations by Mark Benjamin kept reverberating in my mind. Mark is a very generous friend who has helped me on a number of occasions 202 / Afterword and is also a very gifted and successful New York filmmaker. What Mark wrote is well worth repeating, as his remarks seem to me to summarize precisely what we’re at and why we make documentaries. Don’t do this documentary career thing just as a job. You will not succeed. This work is all about “heart,” feeling people and life. You have got to be concerned with the human condition. Documentaries have the power to make change. Change is hard, and so is making documentary films, but the cumulative power of all social political films is awesome. This career is not for the weak. My motto has always been, “We are film warriors, and God is our gaffer.” We shoot till it’s dark, and the amazing characters you meet making documentaries will enrich your life beyond anything you could wish for. ...