Writing, Directing, and Producing Documentary Films and Digital Videos

Fifth Edition

Alan Rosenthal and Ned Eckhardt

Narrated by 5395 Media LLC

Available from Audible

Book published by Southern Illinois University Press

In a new edition of this popular guidebook, filmmakers Alan Rosenthal and Ned Eckhardt show readers how to utilize the latest innovations in equipment, technologies, and production techniques for success in the digital, web-based world of documentary film.

All twenty-four chapters of the volume have been revised to reflect the latest advances in documentary filmmaking. Rosenthal and Eckhardt discuss the myriad ways in which technological changes have impacted the creation process of documentary films, including how these evolving technologies both complicate and enrich filmmaking today. The book provides crucial insights for the filmmaker from the film’s conception to distribution of the finished film. Topics include creating dynamic proposals, writing narration, and navigating the murky world of contracts. Also included are many practical tips for first-time filmmakers. To provide context and to illustrate techniques, Rosenthal and Eckhardt reference more than one hundred documentaries in detail.

A new appendix, “Using the Web and Social Media to Prepare for Your Career,” guides filmmakers through the process of leveraging social media and crowdsourcing for success in filmmaking, fund-raising, and promotion. A day-to-day field manual packed with invaluable lessons, this volume is essential reading for both novice and experienced documentary filmmakers.

Alan Rosenthal is a professor emeritus of communications at Hebrew University in Jerusalem and a documentary filmmaker with more than fifty films to his credit as writer, director, or producer. His books include Succeeding as a Documentary Filmmaker: A Guide to the Professional World and From “Chariots of Fire” to “The King's Speech”: Writing Biopics and Docudramas. His docudrama The First Fagin, about the transportation of convicts to Australia in the nineteenth century, was invited for special feature presentation at the Melbourne International Film Festival in 2012.

Ned Eckhardt is a professor emeritus and founder of the television and documentary production program at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. He is the author of Documentary Filmmakers Handbook. His most recent film is Seabrook Farms Remembered. He served as an executive producer for Pact5, a national sexual assault awareness and prevention campaign that featured college student documentaries.

REVIEWS:

“A unique blend of styles and technical approaches that provides a deep and enriching experience for the reader. Without question it should be in the library of every serious documentary filmmaker, and in the classrooms of every documentary film student!”

—Robert Johnson Jr., Framingham State University

“Writing, Directing, and Producing Documentary Films and Digital Videos (fifth edition) is an invaluable resource for documentary filmmakers, higher education instructors, and students. This edition adds breadth to the content by including additional guidance on proposal writing, new production examples, and insights on digital production and the impact of new distribution models on documentary filmmaking. The content is inspiring, informative, and practical, providing a useful companion for filmmakers at all levels of experience. I strongly recommend that anyone interested in documentary filmmaking read this book and keep it readily available.”

—Laura Vazquez, Northern Illinois University