Documentary Storytelling, 4th EditionCreative Nonfiction on ScreenBy Sheila Curran Bernard
358 Pages
Documentary Storytelling has reached filmmakers and filmgoers worldwide with its unique focus on the key ingredient for success in the growing global documentary marketplace: storytelling. This practical guide reveals how today’s top filmmakers bring the tools of narrative cinema to the world of nonfiction film and video without sacrificing the rigor and truthfulness that give documentaries their power. The book offers practical advice for producers, directors, editors, cinematographers, writers and others seeking to make ethical and effective films that merge the strengths of visual and aural media with the power of narrative storytelling.
In this new, updated edition, Emmy Award-winning author Sheila Curran Bernard offers:
- New strategies for analyzing documentary work
- New conversations with filmmakers including Stanley Nelson (The Black Panthers), Kazuhiro Soda (Mental), Orlando von Einsiedel (Virunga), and Cara Mertes (JustFilms)
- Discussions previously held with Susan Kim (Imaginary Witness), Deborah Scranton (The War Tapes), Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side), and James Marsh (Man on Wire).
Table of ContentsCHAPTER 1 Introduction
PART I • Understanding Story
CHAPTER 2 Story Basics
CHAPTER 3 Finding the Story
CHAPTER 4 Story Structure
CHAPTER 5 Time on Screen
CHAPTER 6 Creative Approach
CHAPTER 7 Close Viewing
PART II • Working with Story
CHAPTER 8 Research
CHAPTER 9 Planning
CHAPTER 10 Selling
CHAPTER 11 Shooting
CHAPTER 12 Editing
CHAPTER 13 Narration and Voice-Over
CHAPTER 14 Storytelling: A Checklist
PART III • Talking About Story
CHAPTER 15 Alex Gibney
CHAPTER 16 Susan Kim
CHAPTER 17 James Marsh
CHAPTER 18 Cara Mertes
CHAPTER 19 Stanley Nelson
CHAPTER 20 Deborah Scranton
CHAPTER 21 Kazuhiro Soda
CHAPTER 22 Orlando von Einsiedel
BiographySheila Curran Bernard is an award-winning filmmaker and writer whose credits include projects for broadcast and theatrical release as well as museum and classroom use. She has taught at Princeton University, Westbrook College, and the University at Albany, SUNY.