The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide [Paperback]

Genevieve Jolliffe (Author), Andrew Zinnes (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 10, 2006

Documentary films have enjoyed a huge resurgence over the last few years, and there's a new generation of filmmakers wanting to get involved. In addition, the digital revolution has made documentaries even more accessible to the general filmmaker. Documentary films can now be shot professionally using cheaper equipment, and smaller cameras enable the documentarian to be less intrusive and therefore more intimate in the subjects' lives. With an increasing number of documentaries making it to the big screen (and enjoying ongoing sales on DVD), the time is right for an information-packed handbook that will guide new filmmakers towards potential artistic and commercial success.

The Documentary Film Makers Handbook features incisive and helpful interviews with dozens of industry professionals, on subjects as diverse as interview techniques, the NBC News Archive, music rights, setting up your own company, the Film Arts Foundation, pitching your proposal, the Sundance Documentary Fund, the Documentary Channel, the British Film Council, camera hire, filmmaking ethics, working with kids, editing your documentary, and DVD distribution.

The book also includes in-depth case studies of some of the most successful and acclaimed documentary films of recent years, including Mad Hot Ballroom, Born Into Brothels, Touching the Void, Beneath the Veil,and Amandla!

The Documentary Film Makers Handbook will be an essential resource for anyone who wants to know more about breaking into this exciting field.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...a book like The Documentary Filmmakers Handbook is long overdue, and an essential tool to help new and future generations of filmmakers continue to raise expectations and challenge audiences to reconsider the world around them- Creative Screening Weekly Magazine, December 2006

'Genevieve Jolliffe and Andrew Zinnes directly transpose their tried and true formula for movie-making guides to the world of non-fiction films. Packing in everything you could want to know about setting up, shooting and distributing your work, this is the last word on its subject. Five Stars.'

Empire Magazine, February 2007

"Jolliffe and Zinnes, building on their previous book on guerrilla film making, turn to over 100 experts on all aspects of making documentaries, including finding subjects, getting funded, exercising appropriate ethics, dealing with censorship, distributing and, of course, the all-important budgeting and fundraising. They also offer case studies of two dozen significant films, including several for which the film makers actually did get to thank their moms and the academy. The result is both hopeful and realistic."

(Reference and Research Book News )

"In libraries that serve documentary filmmakers, this resource by filmmaker Joliffe and her husband/ writing partner Zinnes will need to be chained down in the reference section. This handbook is packed with information that documentary filmmakers (especially beginners need).... the overall value of this treasure trove of advice and guidance far overshadows these problems." Summing Up: Essential. All levels

(Choice )

"...an in dispensable new compendium from the folks who brought you The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook (2004)."- Tom Powers, Documentary, July- August 2007 (Documentary )

"If you approach learning as a hands-on, learn from others endeavor, this Handbook has a plethora of useful information that will elevate your knowledge level to that of some of the finest documentaries in the world."- Rob Gold, Film Festival Today, June 21, 2007

(Film Festival Today )

"…a book like The Documentary Filmmakers Handbook is long overdue, and an essential tool to help new and future generations of filmmakers continue to raise expectations and challenge audiences to reconsider the world around them- Creative Screening Weekly Magazine, December 2006

"Jolliffe and Zinnes, building on their previous book on guerrilla film making, turn to over 100 experts on all aspects of making documentaries, including finding subjects, getting funded, exercising appropriate ethics, dealing with censorship, distributing and, of course, the all-important budgeting and fundraising. They also offer case studies of two dozen significant films, including several for which the film makers actually did get to thank their moms and the academy. The result is both hopeful and realistic."

(, )

“In libraries that serve documentary filmmakers, this resource by filmmaker Joliffe and her husband/ writing partner Zinnes will need to be chained down in the reference section. This handbook is packed with information that documentary filmmakers (especially beginners need)…. the overall value of this treasure trove of advice and guidance far overshadows these problems.” Summing Up: Essential. All levels

(, )

“…an in dispensable new compendium from the folks who brought you The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook (2004).”- Tom Powers, Documentary, July- August 2007 (, )

“If you approach learning as a hands-on, learn from others endeavor, this Handbook has a plethora of useful information that will elevate your knowledge level to that of some of the finest documentaries in the world.”- Rob Gold, Film Festival Today, June 21, 2007

(, )

About the Author

Genevieve Jolliffe met Chris Jones at film school and the two went into independent filmmaking through their production company, Living Spirit Pictures. She directed their third film together, Urban Ghost Story, in 1998. After moving to Los Angeles, Genevieve was a major force in pulling together the US edition of The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook, and she also co-authored The Documentary Film Makers Handbook in 2006. With her husband and screenwriting partner Andrew Zinnes, she has sold projects to Warner Bros and has two indie features set to be filmed in 2010.

Andrew Zinnes has worked in development at Paramount Pictures and at USA Networks. He left to become a script analyst, and worked for Morgan Creek Productions, Artisan and several script analyst companies. Using his documentary filmmaking experience, Andrew was the perfect co-author for The Documentary Film Makers Handbook. He has taught documentary at the NY Film Academy and has lectured on filmmaking at schools and colleges around the US. He is a founding partner of the film company Crazee Pictures.

Product Details

• Paperback: 560 pages
• Publisher: Continuum (October 10, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826416659
• ISBN-13: 978-0826416650
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 7.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #265,331 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So much more than another "how to" book, November 20, 2006

By 

Cliff Milledge - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide (Paperback)

Though this book has plenty of useful resources from writing to funding to filming to distributing your film, what really sets it apart from the rest are the short interviews throughout the book with people from all sections of the industry--not just directors! They generally start off with a simple question--What do you do?--and then quickly gets down to brass tacks and inside dope. It's fascinating stuff...engaging reading isn't exactly what one expects from a "handbook" but they've done it right.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have!, March 31, 2007

By 

My Two Cents (Providence, RI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide (Paperback)

This book is packed with tons of useful information. We consider ourselves somewhat expererienced documentary film-makers, but it's given us a lot of valuable information we didn't alreadly know, and didn't know who to ask.

8 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book - interviews are very helpful!, November 16, 2006

By 

Paul Kontonis (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide (Paperback)

If you are truly interested in becoming a documentary filmmaker then this is the book for you, whether you are just starting or already well on your way. I found the interviews in the book to be the most helpful and informative. Thanks for putting together such a functional and important guide!