Documentary Basics

Network with other filmmakers - Attend a film festival or volunteer on a documentary film project. Meet other filmmakers and ask how they got started. Get inspired, ask for advice. Join filmmaker and documentary forums online such as the D-Word.com or documentary groups on LinkedIn. Offer to help other filmmakers with THEIR projects. There’s nothing more inspiring than seeing another filmmaker in action to get you moving on your own project!

Hit the record button - Don’t worry so much about a treatment or writing anything down. Just go out and start shooting anything that seems interesting for your story. You can figure out how it’s going to all come together later. Be open to change and following the story as it unfolds.

Write an outline – If you’re more of a planner, forget the last tip. Write down the major points or sections you want to cover in your documentary. Not sure what the major sections are? Think about the important questions you want answered in your documentary. Write those down and then figure out what information or footage is needed to start covering each of those major points or questions. 

Shoot ONE interview – It’s easy to get overwhelmed with everything that needs to get done to make a documentary. Choose the easiest and most accessible person you can think of and interview them. (Tip! Make sure to get great audio. Take along a portable audio recorder like the Zoom H1

Get on Social Media – It’s never too soon to start building an audience for your film. The whole process of making a documentary can start with a simple Facebook page or a blog. Get people talking about the topic of your documentary and start sharing progress on your film. These early followers become your extended production team providing support in the form of ideas, funding and connection

Make a trailer – This might be THE most important thing you can do to start the process of making a documentary. Even if you don’t have any footage shot yet, get creative and put something together with photos and archival footage. A 1-5 minute trailer is not only a great way to test your idea before committing to a full length feature film, it's a fantastic fundraising and promotional to

Find a camera – On the more practical side of things, in order to make a documentary, you’re going to need some equipment. At the very least, a camera and a video editing computer will likely be necessary. See the handy video gear starter kit that came with this cour

Do market research – type in the subject of your documentary into Google and YouTube. Explore what else is out there on the topic you'd like to cover. Is there an existing audience hungry for insight on this topic? What existing Facebook groups or organizations already exist that are actively engaged in the topic? How will your documentary offer something different than anything else currently on the ma

Conduct a crowd funding campaign – There’s nothing quite like a fundraising campaign to galvanize you and your team. There’s lots involved in a crowd funding campaign. It’s best if you can have a following of at least 500-1000 people first and you’ll need a video trailer. For inspiration, check out documentary fundraising campaigns on Kickstarter.com and IndieGoGo

Sign up for a filmmaking workshop – If you are truly starting from scratch, a basic course in video production could be just what you need. Check your local university or community college for classes, browse for video production workshops in your area, or jump right in with the popular 7-Day Documentary Crash Course offered right here on Desktop Documentaries.