writing a documentary

[uncle_al]

On the other hand, if you're shooting a documentary about rampaging elephants, I think that one would pretty much shoot itself as you went.

As long as the elephants are not stampeding in the direction of your camera setup, of course...

Al B.

[ScriptNurse]

You're right, Al. I think it's all HIGHLY dependent on the subject. I would run off to Hawaii to shoot a documentary about volcanoes with but a general idea of the subject areas I would want to cover. To some degree, the film shoots itself as it's being shot. In the case of volcanoes, unless there's a major eruption or cataclysmic event that you capture, you have some degree of flexibility.

On the other hand, if you're shooting a documentary about rampaging elephants, I think that one would pretty much shoot itself as you went.

[uncle_al]

As I understand it, the two-column audio/visual script isn't written until there's at least a rough edit.  Don't hold me to this, however... my experience in docs has been strictly on the production side, as a sound mixer on an industrial doc about wool.

Al B.

[ScriptNurse]

Since most documentaries are not necessarily historical or the producers don't yet know what resources will be available to them, it seems as though documentary proposals are more often used. Here's a sample:  http://www.austinfilm.org/files/Sample%20Proposal%20-%20Documentary.pdf

Another popular approach seems to be a general outline of the contents, but not a script, per se.

A tool specifically for audio/video outlining is Final Draft Audio/Visual ... http://finaldraft.com/products/final-draft-av/

Here's some handy templates from Chicago Media Works ... http://www.chicagomediaworks.com/2instructworks/3editing_doc/3docedit_scriptmpl/3editing_docscripttemplate.html

I hope this helps.

[sharry]

hey all.... i need help writing a screenplay for a documentary.... can you guys guide in a way that post me a link that has a sample and i can read it.... it will be very helpful!


thanks