Characteristics The Best Documentaries Share

by Adam Krell

Maybe your non-profit organization wants to encourage more volunteers and donations. Perhaps your business wants consumers to know the history of your company. Maybe your historical society has uncovered something incredible that begs to be shared. Whatever your reasons for deciding to create a documentary, make sure you rely on professionals to turn your message into an entertaining, effective film. A professional will know how to incorporate some of the common characteristics of the best documentaries into your message.

A Compelling Story

When you’re asking an audience to devote a few hours or even just half an hour to your documentary, you have to keep their attention. No matter how noble your message, if you don’t emulate the best fictional movies and tales, you won’t be able to drive your message home.

Professional filmmakers can turn almost any message into a compelling story with drama, conflict and a hero/heroine or team of heroes who attempt to overcome an obstacle. Unlike typical movies, documentaries are free to ask the audience to join the team of difference-makers, which you can use to inspire people to act.

Expert or Firsthand Accounts

Your documentary should emulate an entertaining fictional film, but it should also reiterate that it’s not fiction, and that it’s well-researched and accurate. Include firsthand accounts of people who’ve experienced the subject matter of your film, or if that’s impossible, interview expert academic researchers who understand the subject matter thoroughly to achieve this effect. If your documentary is about the effectiveness of a company or organization, you might also opt to include firsthand accounts of the people who the company or organization has helped.

Firsthand Footage

If possible, travel to the areas highlighted in your documentary and capture firsthand footage of your subject matter. If you’re producing a historical documentary, splice in archival clips or photographs and drawings from the historical period. You might also have the camera crew travel to areas important to your historical subject matter to contrast how they appear in modern day. Video comes to life better than text, so take advantage of the medium to showcase the visual aspects of your message.

Seamless Post-Production

Even the best footage and interviews can form a poor documentary. Without an expert team at the helm of post-production, your documentary may come across as poorly edited and drab. A high quality video production team will be able to edit your documentary down to the most effective length and include seamless video transitions and expository narration. They’ll also be responsible for an original musical composition to give your documentary the emotional oomph it aims to convey.

PBS explains the increased platforms for sharing documentaries, the decreased budget for making them and more interested investors are spurring the creation of more documentaries than ever. To make your documentary stand out, you have to have not only a compelling message to share, but a quality film that shares the characteristics of the best documentaries as it “sells” the message of your organization or company. An NYC company with both documentary and commercial TV production experience is exactly the type of business you need to guide your vision to film.