Customer Reviews

The Documentary Film Makers Handbook: A Guerilla Guide

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

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.

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.

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!

I like the idea of this book. But I have to admit the low stars is because I kind of expected it to be something totally different. This is a collection of interviews with various documentary makers. And all though some were insightful, I found a many to be a bit repetative. Again, I expected a more indepth look at the creative process and more of a "how to" book then a collection of interviews. So upon first reading I was immediately bummed out. There are definately some worthwhile interviews in here that are insightful. But all and all, I think I could have found those interviews on line or in a magazine. If you are looking for more of a how to or instructional guide, you will be disappointed with this.

I finally got a copy of this and wasn't disappointed. Not as much technical information as the Guerilla Blueprint and the Guerilla Handbook, but in keeping with the nature of doc filmmaking you get muchas interviews with doc filmmakers and the challenges faced in doc production. Everything from financing to border crossing. As a filmmaker I feel it's important to learn every and anything I can get my hands on in terms of production. A good addition to my home archive.

Zinnes and Jolliffe cover almost every aspect of making great documentaries. As Zinnes says in his classes, "The point [of the book] is to give people straight answers and practical tips to keep them out of all kinds of trouble, and to help their projects move forward faster, look better, and cost less."

Using the book, documentarians of all stripes will have a basic grounding in the process, that can prepare them to make an excellent film. People need to get some real-life shooting experience, but the rest of it is covered here.

Zinnes again: "I can't teach people to be creative, or intelligent, or great storytellers." But he can give them a map and guideposts to the long and arduous process of creating a watchable film. The book would benefit from a re-issue after some editing, but the basic data is there. Already serving as a text in schools, it continues to create a wide-ranging and stimulating discussions about the very nature of filmmaking and particularly the themes and processes of documentary-making.

Full of interesting viewpoints from seasoned pros, this book takes in all angles and gives many useful resources and solid advice on just about every subject - writing, funding, filming, to distribution, as well as those great short interviews.

Great reference tool, covers almost all aspects of documentary film making. It has some typos, enough to distract you, but in general could apply to any documentary you're planning/making. very well recommended.

One of my faculty use this book as a teaching tool and finds it creates a great deal of discussion and stimulation about the subject of documentary filmmaking. I ordered the book and read it and keep it in my library as a source book as well. It gives a good insight into the world of documentary filmmaking and is a good book for students as well as 30 year pros of the craft.It covers a wide range of topics that are quite appropriate and meaningful to the subject and is a great guide from beginning to end.

This book is full of great information, but there are many places in the text where there appears to be missing text. e.g. pages 51, 57, 59 where there are little boxes that appear in the middle of sentences & break up the text, sometimes with returns that leave one word on a line. Curious.

Interesting viewpoints from professionals - all angles are covered, which makes them valid but often repetitive. After reading Videomaker's book, even more of the Guerilla Guide seemed redundant. But it is all good information, and the interview format is interesting. It gets a good "thumbs up" but no more than 3 1/2 stars out of 5.