ABSTRACT
What you will find here is a targeted approach on the ways of writing and reading documentary film projects with the goal of having them developed and financed.
Writing a documentary film proposal to attract a film or TV producer and obtain funding can be – and usually always is – a grueling process. Unlike many fiction films that are written by screenwriters, the documentary project proposal will most often be conceived and written by the director. This chapter offers some tips and writing and reading strategies that will not only, I hope, help you write with more ease and mastery but will also be a supportive companion in your search for the “core” of your documentary’s subject and approach. Special attention will be given to such notions as the angle, the perspective, the point of view from which you are looking and approaching your topic, character or situation that you wish to film and document.
Although it seems very contradictory to have to write a detailed documentary film proposal or script before having filmed a single shot, it is an exercise that over the years has become absolutely unavoidable for anyone who wants to see his or her project developed, financed and bought by a producer, broadcaster or distributor on one of the many viewing platforms – TV, cinema and of course, the web.
