ABSTRACT
The dramatized story documentary is one of the few art forms pioneered by television, stemming from the social films such as Children on Trial, Out of True and Children of the City. The successful writing of such documentaries depends in the first place on thorough research. Many a time trudging from town to town, trying to sift the heart of the matter from the differing viewpoints of all interested parties, the author have envied the writer of plays, who is able to sit at home and conjure up character and situation from imagination. Sometimes there is a temptation for the writer, as a newly fledged “expert,” to include too many facts in the draft dialogue. The production of story documentaries is complicated by ordinary television standards and it makes heavy demands—a big studio, elaborate film sequences, large casts, multiple sets, the maximum number of camera, film and sound channels, complicated equipment moves.
