Guidelines for producing a short documentary

This article gives ideas and suggestions on important facts to use in the post production and start of a short documentary film which is going to merge with the genre of our film. Before shooting the film: The starting point is, of course, to think of an interesting topic that all the members of the group are enthusiastic about. It is hard to give advice about this phase, except "be patient." It is important to formulate the basic idea of the film as precisely and clearly as possible. If you do not know why you want to make this film, what it is about and where the story is going, then it might not be a very good idea for a film. If you haven't previously worked in the documentary genre, it is a good idea to find some examples that you can draw inspiration from before laying down the aesthetics and method of your film. Discuss whether you prefer to have television or film documentaries as your primary source of inspiration. If you lean toward TV documentarism, the library – in Aarhus, especially the State and National Library – can be helpful (although it may take a few days to get the programmes). If you prefer documentary films, then (again in Aarhus) Filmhuset is the place to seek inspiration. Find a selection of different documentaries, discuss the qualities of each film and note the good elements. This will probably give you an idea of how you want to structure your own film. During these screenings, however, keep in mind that most documentaries are not made on the same basis as the short fiction film – this limits the degree to which you should be inspired. This is the link to the site and the full article of the above.

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