The Art of the Documentary: Fifteen Conversations with Leading Directors, Cinematographers, Editors, and Producers

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Cunningham, Megan, Author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Documentary films--Production and direction--United States--Interviews.

Documentary films.

Documentary photography--United States--Interviews.

Documentary photography.

Motion picture producers and directors--United States--Interviews.

Motion picture producers and directors.

Cinematographers.

Motion picture editors.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (1 v.) : ill.

Edition:

2nd ed.

Other Title:

Fifteen conversations with leading directors, cinematographers, editors, and producers

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] Pearson Education 2014

Language Note:

English

System Details:

text file

Summary:

Documentary filmmaking is a powerful and vital element to our society, and those who are responsible for bringing real stories and issues to a creative medium often have an uncanny ability to make a deep connection to us with their art. Legendary directors and cinematographers such as the Maysles brothers, D.A. Pennabaker & Chris Hegedus, Errol Morris, or Ken Burns have vividly made their marks in recent decades and continue to inspire those who enter the field. Inexpensive video camera equipment and video editing software have helped fuel a new wave of truth-tellers, bringing the tools of the craft within reach of amateurs and students, as well as independent journalists and filmmakers on a budget. In The Art of the Documentary , the directors, editors, cinematographers, and producers behind today's most thought-provoking nonfiction films reveal the thought processes, methods, and collaborations that have guided their efforts- from project conception to developing, producing, shooting, editing, and releasing some of the finest documentary films of recent decades. This richly illustrated volume, which will appeal to professional and aspiring filmmakers, as well as documentary enthusiasts, features conversations with directors, cinematographers, editors, and producers, including Ken Burns (The Civil War, Jazz, Baseball), director/cinematographer D A Pennebaker (Dont Look Back, The War Room), director/cinematographer Albert Maysles (Gimme Shelter, Grey Gardens), director Errol Morris (The Fog of War, The Thin Blue Line), director Chris Hegedus (Startup.com, Down from the Mountain), editor Larry Silk (Pumping Iron, Wild Man Blues), cinematographer Buddy Squires (The Civil War, Ram Dass, Fierce Grace), director/producer Lauren Lazin (Tupac: Resurrection, Journey of Dr. Dre), editor/director Paula Heredia (The Vagina Monologues, In Memoriam: New York City, 9/11/01), director/cinematographer Kirsten Johnson (Fahrenheit 9/11, Innocent Until Proven Guilty), editor Geof Bartz (Lenny Bruce: Swear to Tell the Truth, He's Having a Baby), Sheila Nevins, President of HBO Documentaries and HBO Family, Alison Bourke, executive producer for IFC, Cara Mertes, executive producer at PBS for the POV series, Frazer Pennebaker, producer. And with contributions by: Carol Dysinger, film editor and professor, NYU Film School, and Haskell Wexler, cinematographer. A Note About the Second Edition: In this edition of the book, we have included the original full interviews...

Contents:

Intro

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication Page

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Foreword

Are Documentaries Art?

A Note About the Second Edition

Directing

Respectfully Collaborating

Ken Burns: Inhabiting History

Style and Storytelling

Choosing an Awkward Process

Ambitious Histories

First-Person, Bottom-Up History

Taking Creative Risks

Fund-raising and PBS

Process and Pragmatism

Errol Morris: Revealing Unexpected Realities

The Thin Blue Line

A Retort to Cinema Verité

The Fog of War

A Narrative Free Fall: Fast, Cheap &amp

Out of Control

Innovative Editing: An Organic Process

Stylized Commercial Spots

Stylish "Switch" Campaigns

D A Pennebaker Chris Hegedus: Capturing Character

D A (Donn Alan) Pennebaker

Chris Hegedus

The Changing Definition of Documentary

Creative Collaboration

Shooting Verité, Developing Character

A Delicate Relationship: Director and Film Subject

Accessing Real-Life Drama

Lauren Lazin: Making Television With a Conscience

From Music Videos to Meaty Stories

Urgent Programming, Impacting an Audience

Tupac: Resurrection

Avant-Garde Aesthetics

Attention Span and Awareness Management

Development and Project Financing

Cinematography

Being There

Kirsten Johnson: Searching the Frame, Exposing a Vision

Career Choices: a Commitment to Independence

Derrida

Cinematography and Directing: Informing Filmmaking

The Two Towns of Jasper

Sexism and Cinematography

Deadline

Buddy Squires: Seeing Intelligently

The Birth of Florentine Films

Brooklyn Bridge

The Donner Party

Shooting Cinema Verité

Becoming Invisible

Handling Pressure, Taking Risks

Collaboration and Communication

Creative Choices

Lighting, Subtlety, and Storytelling.

Albert Maysles: Being Present and Experiencing

Psychiatry in Russia

Direct Cinema

Primary

Yanki No!

Salesman

Gimme Shelter

Grey Gardens

Christo

Lighting and the Move to Video

In Transit

Editing

Finding the Film

Geof Bartz: Crafting Cinematic Television

Exposition and Eliminating Redundancies

Bending the Rules of Cinema Verité

Creating Structure in Selecting

Conquering Boredom: Parallel Editing

The Surrogate Audience

Paula Heredia: Finding Structure, Inventing Form

Multiple Perspectives: The Editor's Role

Modulations: Cinema for the Ear

Free Tibet

Embracing the Character

The Paris Review: Early Chapters

Lost in Mississippi

In Memoriam: New York City, 9/11/01

Larry Silk: Using the Mystery of What Comes Next

The Origins of Documentary

Sit In: The Dawn of Public Interest Television

Reinforcing the Essence

Marjoe: The Appeal of a Rascal

Pumping Iron: Creating Substantive Story Lines and Archetypal Characters

American Dream: Complex, Righteous Characters

Screening Selects

Wild Man Blues: The Real Woody Allen

Making Discoveries in the Dailies

Courage to Change Courses

Producing

Problem Solving

Sheila Nevins: Collaborating with Directors

Lauren Lazin: Pitching and Television Coproduction

Alison Palmer Bourke: Producing Independent Visions

Cara Mertes: Showcasing Independent Voices

Frazer Pennebaker: Sustaining Documentary Production

Appendix

Where to Buy Documentary Films

Notable Film Festivals that Feature Documentary Films

Documentary Film Markets

Mastering Your Craft

Professional Associations

Additional Information for Selected Films

Index.

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

ISBN:

9780133764987

0133764982

9780133764970

0133764974

9780321981929

0321981928

9780133765021

0133765024

OCLC:

879386259