Documentary Filmmakers Speak [Paperback]

Liz Stubbs (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2002

A filmmaker takes readers behind the lens in a series of candid interviews with creators of some of the most influential documentaries of our time. Filmmakers, film students, documentary makers for film and television, and lovers of pop culture will hear, in the filmmakers’ own words, the challenges and triumphs faced in making documentaries. Firsthand knowledge is shared on such topics as how the documentary process differs from making fictional films, storytelling technique, ethical boundaries, funding, film festivals, and much more. Industry leaders and award-winning filmmakers interviewed include: Ross McElwee, Albert Maysles, Susan Froemke, Bruce Sinofsky, Liz Garbus, DA Pennebaker, Chris Hedegus, Allie Light and Nick Broomfield. This reference provides insight into some of the most potent and best-known documentary work done in recent years.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Documentary films are enjoying a resurgence in popularity. Ken Burns' TV series have drawn huge ratings, at least for PBS; HBO and other cable channels fill out their schedules with nonfiction films; and Michael Moore's satiric features meet with unprecedented success on big screens. Stubbs interviews 13 filmmakers, from cinema verite pioneers Albert Maysles (Salesman) and D. A. Pennebaker (Don't Look Back) to newer practitioners with fresh approaches, such as Ross McElwee (Sherman's March) and Nick Broomfield (Kurt and Courtney). Other subjects include Barbara Kopple, an Oscar-winner for Harlan County, U.S.A.; Chris Hegedus, who documented the dot-com crash in Startup.com; and Burns, the genre's golden boy. They all share their observations about such matters as the effect of the camera's presence on their subjects, the difficulties of obtaining financing, and the inevitable switch from film to digital video. Several mention the experience of starting off to make one kind of film, only to end up with a different kind, the product of an unscripted spontaneity that fiction films can only enviously imitate. Gordon Flagg
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

“This book is like a series of master classes with some of the best, most articulate and passionate documentary filmmakers working today. Liz asks the right questions. She has the ability to get her subjects to open up and share a personal side to what it take to become a documentary filmmaker. If you do or don’t go to film school, read this book.”

(David H. Lyman, founder and director, The International Film Workshops )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Allworth Press (August 1, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581152361
• ISBN-13: 978-1581152364
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #452,934 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars caveat lector, October 15, 2006

By 

a reader (San Francisco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Documentary Filmmakers Speak (Paperback)

Stubbs' book of interviews with contemporary American documentary filmmakers may be useful (even inspirational) for those new to the field, but the author doesn't know her turf. The volume is filled with minor factual errors: film titles are misspelled, interviewees' self-serving statements go unchallenged, and proofreading errors abound. Clearly, Stubbs was learning as she went along, and editorial oversight was minimal.

For better or worse, the book reveals the enthusiasms of a novice. The interviews are superficial, and somewhat adulatory: the writer seldom takes a critical or analytical view of the filmmakers' assumptions and methodologies.

The book may appeal to beginner film students looking for easy-to-read interviews with Ross McElwee and Berlinger & Sinofsky; there are much more informative interviews with Al Maysles, D.A. Pennebaker, Barbara Kopple, and Ken Burns elsewhere. Caveat lector.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Liz Stubbs Documantry Filmmakers Speak, November 9, 2002

By 

Claire Hurd, Educator (VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Documentary Filmmakers Speak (Paperback)

Liz Stubbs Documentary Filmmakers Speak, is a fascinating account of the manner in which some of the greatest filmmakers of our country go about the process of creating masterpieces. Because Liz Stubbs is a truly brillant interviewer she has been successful in drawing out the humanity and the passion of these thirteen extraordinary filmmakers. It is a must read for anyone who has watched a Ken Burns, Bruce Sinofsky or a D.A. Pennebaker/Chris Hegedus production. It was a can't put down for me and a muxt for my Holiday giving list.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspirational, February 19, 2005

By 

Robert S. Lawson "elian" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Documentary Filmmakers Speak (Paperback)

I just finished reading this book and I really loved it. I'm an aspiring documentary filmmaker and this book gave me such a clear idea of what is really involved in the making of documentaries that matter, and the many approaches one can take to get there. It can be daunting to hear one artist declare that there is only one way to make a documentary, and think, "but I don't know that I can or want to work that way - perhaps I'm not cut out for this". But this book offers such a wide variety of voices that if one approach doesn't resonate, then another surely will. The only hard and true constant that every filmmaker shares is the absolute necessity for passion, empathy and stamina. The level of joy and passion that informs every voice in this book is truly inspirational. Now that I've finished reading my library copy, I'll be buying my own copy, as well as a copy for my documentary partner. It's my new bible.