Empire Review, December 2006
The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla
Guide *****
Directly transpose their tried and true formula for
movie-making guides to the world of non-fiction
films. Packing in everything you could want to know
about setting up, shooting and distributing your
work, this is the last word on its subject.
Creative Screenwriting, Winter 2006
Review
By George Lawrence
Whether you're an utter novice or a seasoned veteran
of the nonfiction film genre, this massive
compendium on the nuts and bolts of documentary
filmmaking offers a wealth of information and
insights. What's more, it's a lively and engaging
read, owing to the dozens of interviews with
documentary filmmakers—including more than a few
giants in the field—who provide real-world war
stories and inside dope.
For the longest time, it seemed documentary
filmmakers took more risks and received less
notoriety than their peers in any other film genre.
They put their lives, careers, and personal finances
on the line to bring stories to the screen that
inform, challenge, and entertain the masses, but
other than a few minutes on the Oscars telecast each
year, documentaries went mostly unnoticed by the
unwashed masses. The Werner Herzogs and D.A.
Pennebakers and Errol Morrises of the world were
doing amazing work, yet reaching only a select and
selective audience.
But with the mega-success at the mainstream
multiplexes of recent docs like An Inconvenient
Truth, March of the Penguins, Super Size Me, and
Michael Moore's works, suddenly nonfiction film
looks like not only a vital calling, but perhaps
also a viable one. Still, making documentaries is
not something anyone should jump into without
thorough preparation and planning, but where can an
aspiring filmmaker turn for sage advice?
Fortunately, Genevieve Jolliffe and Andrew Zinnes'
The Documentary Film Makers Handbook has arrived at
precisely the right moment, when the genre is
growing in recognition and interest in the field is
growing fast.
This 560-page volume, which is really more of a
bible than a handbook (it barely fits in your hand
anyway, and it's damned heavy), is jam-packed with
information and real-world stories that illuminate
the long, hard-fought process of getting a film
made. Every step is covered, from finding a topic
and choosing a documentary sub-genre, to raising
money, creating a budget, pitching to broadcasters,
assembling a crew, interviewing techniques, docu-drama
versus straight documentary, film festivals and
distribution, music rights, stock footage, the IMAX
format, shooting overseas, and the ethics of
documentary filmmaking. There's even information on
what to do if you're arrested while shooting in a
foreign country (as happened to co-writer Jolliffe
when she was directing the feature film Urban Ghost
Story). No stone is apparently left unturned, and
for producers, directors, writers, directors of
photography, and on down the line, this is a
definitive compendium that will benefit novices and
experienced pros alike.
"Long gone is the notion that docs can only be
stuffy and boring," Jolliffe and Zinnes proclaim in
their introduction. That theme permeates the entire
book, the bulk of which is composed of more than 100
interviews with filmmakers and others in all facets
of documentary filmmaking. Some of the genre's
heaviest hitters are here, including Nick Broomfield
(Kurt & Courtney), Michael Apted (14 Up, etc.) and
Barbara Kopple (Harlan County, U.S.A.). The
interviews are presented in the question-and-answer
format, and are deceptively informative; many begin
with a simple question such as, "What does
documentary filmmaking mean to you?" and quickly
segue into the nuts and bolts of filmmaking,
instructive anecdotes, practical how-to information,
and big-picture discussions about the role of the
documentary filmmaker in the media and society. Many
of the hurdles faced by documentarians, who often
must shoot at a moment's notice, are world's away
from the bloated-budget world of their mainstream
Hollywood counterparts; and some are quite similar,
such as the struggle between art and commerce—or, in
this case, between the filmmaker's passion for the
material and the marketplace's willingness to fund
certain projects but not others.
"The reality is you choose the subject that you
think you can get done next," says Eugene Jarecki,
director of Why We Fight. "And that's a tragic thing
to say. There are other things that I was dying to
do, but this was the one in an increasingly
complicated world of national security and
international relations, that was a natural to pitch
to the world community. It's also something that I
really cared about."
THE WRAP UP
It's been 30 years since movies like Hearts and
Minds, the unflinching examination of the Vietnam
War, raised expectations about what documentaries
can accomplish. A book like The Documentary Film
Makers Handbook is long overdue, and an essential
tool to help new and future generations of
filmmakers continue to raise expectations and
challenge audiences to reconsider the world around
them.