Directing the Documentary, 5th Edition

Chapter 24Preparing to Direct

Documentaries involve improvisation, so you must often revise as you go. Making a directing plan is useful, however, because it’s one more plank in the all-important development work before you leap into the fray. Work on a computer so you can read, think, and revise over a period of time. Don’t forget to compile those life-saving “do not forget” lists of tasks and ideas (see this book’s Web site, http://directingthedocumentary.com for downloadable re minder lists). Plan to cover expository information, crucial to the coherence of any story, in multiple ways so you have options in postproduction.

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