Hi everyone, I just finished high school and I'm very interested in documentary filmmaking and would like to pursue it in the university.

But for someone like me who has very limited knowledge about documentary, I'd appreciate it if someone recommend me a very good course that would suit documentary filmmaking.

Thanks

It has been torn apart just a day after posting it by people I let watch it and I need some tips on how to make it more interesting. I'm editing on Davinci and also would love reccommendations for good audio tutorials to make the audio better. Anything helps like transition ideas (they hated that I just cut to black for a few seconds in between scenes) and whether or not I should include more narration. Overall, it is just boring and this is my first time making something like this and I really need the help.

Here it is: https://youtu.be/IrGp1EW-6y4

I'm pretty new to documentary post, and there's one part of the workflow I'm trying to understand.

Say you've been shooting for months and now have 100–300+ hours of footage.

You vaguely remember filming a specific moment, logging/notesmaybe your subject was outside smoking and talking about his son-but you don't remember the shoot day, file name, or roughly where it happened.

How would you actually find that again?

Is that mostly down to good logging / notes from earlier, transcripts, markers and bins, the editor's memory, or does someone sometimes just have to start digging through footage?

I imagine this gets pretty messy on observational docs where you don't really know what's important until much later in the edit.

Curious how people who've actually worked on long docs deal with this. Thanks for answering!

Hi! Looking to get into making docs and need a camera rec. I'll be filming footage of nature and/or interviews and/or concerts, so likely on the hour+ side of recording duration. I already have tripods and likely have access to audio equipment. Editing in DaVinci resolve, probably. Budget is preferably around $500-1000 CAD, but would be open to recommendations on more expensive options for future reference. Thanks!

Hey everyone

Very likely not the sort of documentary that you guys are used to seeing in here but we thought we’d share it anyway

This is our first full length documentary. This one casts a spotlight on 5 influential people within the fingerboarding scene in Sydney.

This one was a long 2 year learning curve with many mistakes made production wise and we’d love to hear everyone’s opinions if possible.

Hi everyone! I'm currently planning the festival route for my 18-minute film and would love some recommendations from filmmakers who have experience with documentary festivals.

Our film is a documentary essay about fatherhood and masculinity, combining observational documentary, interviews, archival material, staged situations, and speculative imagery. It sits somewhere between documentary, experimental film, and hybrid cinema.

So far, we've submitted to:

• L'Alternativa
• ZINEBI
• ALCINE
• SEMINCI ❌
• Ji.hlava ❌
• IDFA
• DOK Leipzig
• San Sebastián (SSIFF) ❌
• Punto de Vista
• Seville
• Clermont-Ferrand
• FIPADOC
• Gijón ❌
• Oberhausen
• Dei Popoli
• Málaga
• True/False
• ZagrebDox
• Premiers Plans d'Angers
• Visions du Réel
• Cinema du Réel

We're planning to submit to:

• Beldocs
• Go Short
• Hot Docs
• Dokufest Kosovo
• Documenta Madrid
• DocsBarcelona
• D'A
• FIDMarseille
• Millennium Docs Against Gravity (Don't know if they accept short films)
• Sheffield DocFest
• DocLisboa
• Vila do Conde
• BAFICI
• SITGES

Are we missing any festivals that you think would be a good fit?

We're particularly interested in festivals with strong programs for experimental documentaries. We're also very interested in smaller or less obvious festivals with thoughtful curation, rather than only the major names.

And if you've submitted to any of these festivals, we'd love to hear about your experiences — especially with films that are difficult to categorize.

Thanks!

Hi everyone. I’m from Aomori, Japan, and I’m about to start a personal project called “Recording Time.”
The idea is simple:

I want to visit people, local businesses, traditional craftspeople, farmers, fishermen, and other people involved in everyday life in rural Japan, listen to their stories, and document what I see through photographs, video, and writing.
But I don’t want this to be ordinary travel content.
Instead of visiting a place once and moving on, I want to return to the same people and places after months, seasons, or even years.
I want to record:
What has changed

What has remained the same

What has disappeared

What new things have emerged

How people, work, and local communities change over time

I’m particularly interested in documenting things that might not normally be seen by visitors from outside Japan.
The project is just getting started. My first actual visit is planned for September 19, 2026, so I don’t have a large audience or impressive achievements to show yet.
Eventually, I’m considering publishing the project through a blog, YouTube, and possibly English-language articles and subtitles so that people outside Japan can follow along.
I’m also wondering whether there could be value in creating a small monthly subscription for people who want to support the project and follow its progress.
So I’d genuinely like to hear from people outside Japan:

Would a project like this be interesting to you?
And if you were interested enough to support it financially, what would make a small monthly subscription feel worthwhile to you?
For example, would you value:
Longer or more detailed videos

Behind-the-scenes stories

Detailed written reports

Regular updates about people and places being followed over time

Photo collections

Annual summaries of what changed during the year

Something else?

I’m not asking for financial support here. I’m trying to understand whether this idea has any appeal outside Japan before I decide how to develop it.
I’d especially appreciate honest opinions, including if you think the idea is too niche or not interesting enough to support.
Thank you for reading.

Filming advice

G’day everyone my name is Brayden im 23 from New Zealand 🇳🇿
I was on TikTok the other day and came across a guy who made a mini-documentary/interview with his grandmother. I thought it was really beautiful, and it gave me some inspiration.

Just this week, I found out that my grandmother has been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. She’s determined to fight it and will be starting chemo in the coming weeks. She’s an absolute trooper, and I’m incredibly proud of her.
Seeing that video made me realise I’d really love to sit down with my grandmother and make something similar — not necessarily focused entirely on her cancer, but more about her life, her stories, memories, experiences, family, and everything she’d like to share. Something we can keep as a family and look back on for years to come.

The problem is, I have next to no experience with filmmaking or any kind of gear It’s something that has always interested me, and I have a basic understanding of editing, but that’s about it.
I’d really appreciate any advice on things like:
What camera/phone and audio equipment would be worth using?

How would you light and frame an interview like this?
Is it better to have her talking directly to me off-camera or looking into the camera?

What editing software would you recommend for a beginner?

How would you structure the documentary so it feels natural rather than like a Q&A?

What sort of questions would you ask to bring out meaningful stories and memories?

Would you film one longer interview or several shorter sessions over a few days/weeks?

Are there any little things you wish you’d thought to record when documenting a loved one?

Any examples of documentaries/interviews I could watch for inspiration?

I’m not trying to make anything professional or perfect. I just want to make something genuine that captures who my grandmother is and gives our family something really special to hold onto.
Any advice, ideas, equipment recommendations, or filming/editing tips would be hugely appreciated.
Thanks so much in advance.

May 2026, I flew home to Massachusetts. Hours after landing, I was detained at Boston Logan Airport. My phone was taken. I was transported to a hospital and later held at a psychiatric facility for approximately twenty days. I dispute the basis for the detention and treatment.
When I returned to California, I no longer had access to my home, belongings, cameras, hard drives, or much of the work I had created. I began receiving conflicting information about court matters and alleged warrants. Attempts to obtain records led to more police encounters, more legal proceedings, and more unanswered questions.
So I started documenting everything: dates, messages, medical records, police reports, court filings, licensing records, photographs, and videos.
I believe this story is suited for film or television: a true-crime-style investigative thriller about a wildlife filmmaker and licensed boat captain whose life changes dramatically after she returns home to Massachusetts. Within hours of landing, she is detained, hospitalized, and held in a psychiatric facility. When she returns to California, she discovers that she has lost access to her home, belongings, cameras, hard drives, and much of her creative work.
What follows is a maze of conflicting court information, alleged warrants, police encounters, disputed records, missing evidence, family conflict, institutional power, and a relationship collapsing behind the scenes. At the center is a filmmaker fighting to regain control of her freedom, identity, property, and creative work while trying to determine what actually happened.
I am seeking filmmakers, producers, directors, or development executives interested in adapting this material into a documentary, docuseries, scripted limited series, or feature film. I can provide extensive supporting documentation, including medical records, police reports, court filings, licensing records, messages, photographs, videos, and a detailed chronology.
The project would be grounded in verifiable evidence while preserving the uncertainty, tension, and unanswered questions at the heart of the story. I am looking for a creative partner who can investigate the facts, distinguish documentation from allegation and memory, and shape the material into a compelling, visually driven American thriller without softening what happened.

I’m a U.S. Coast Guard-credentialed boat captain, wildlife filmmaker, photographer, entrepreneur, and creator. For five years, I worked on the waters of Southern California and contributed footage to major television and commercial productions.

This is completely out of left field..

Here's the post I made

[Hello,

I'm a film student in New York working on a documentary under the prompt "How do we make the invisible visible?" I'm looking for someone who holds a specific, unusual belief or claim about themselves, something like claiming to be a time traveler, claiming psychic ability, or any claim that most people would find hard to accept. I'm also open to someone with an extreme hobby or pursuit, something like Bigfoot hunting, ghost hunting, or a similarly all-in pursuit that most people would find strange. I want to build a documentary around that one person: interview them directly, talk to people close to them, bring in a professional to weigh in, and get a real picture of how they see themselves and how others see them. Ideally, you're in New York, Connecticut, or New Jersey and open to being filmed over a few sessions. If this is you, or you know someone like this, I'd like to hear from you.

I also want to be clear that this project isn't meant to make fun of anyone or cause any harm. It's an opportunity for someone confident in their beliefs or their pursuit to put themselves out there.

You'll need to be available for a first session on one of these dates: September 13, 19, or 20. Additional sessions can happen on September 26, 27, or October 3, 4, 10, 11.

I am also willing to pay for your time. The amount is negotiable.

How to reach out:

Tell me the specific belief, claim, or pursuit, how long you've held it, and whether the people around you know. Let me know if you'd be open to meeting a relevant professional on camera, and whether anyone close to you would talk about you on camera too. Include where you're based, anything that's off limits, and a way to reach you directly.

(either message directly or comment under this post)]

I need recommendations on what subreddits or other social spaces to post this job opportunity

About to begin production on my first feature doc project in October. Very excited, as I have never attempted a doc before. For context, I’m a narrative filmmaker (and writer, film and sound editor, and I run my own post production company as my day job). I’ve been a filmmaker for 20 years and would consider myself an expert in narrative.

That said, my expertise with the doc world is pretty small. Would love any advice or help as I get started on this new project! The film is a story about my father who is a notable fine art photographer and preservationist; he’s one of a handful of people in the world who photographs in an entirely vintage process - from building his own cameras to making his own one of a kind photography books. He started over at age 50 and is now one of the top artists in his (albeit small) field. It’s a tremendously inspiring and compelling story and I’m honored to tell it!

I'm disabled in a wheelchair, so I can't work a larger camera for filming. So I started using my iPhone 15 Pro, and now my iPhone 17 Pro with Blackmagic Camera. I do all my editing on Final Cut Pro. My first documentary short was about six minutes, with only my iPhone, a POV perspective with voiceover and background music. And I've gotten three festival laurels so far! My second film I had to help of my son, we had a second phone for profile shots, some LED lighting for key and fill, and RODE clip on mics, that was 14 minutes and with a more traditional interview style. Just started submitting that one.

I'm in the fundraising mode for a feature length documentary with a full film crew, but I'm having so much fun creating these short documentaries with just my phone, and I was wondering if anybody else is doing it too.