Crafting Contemporary Documentaries and Docuseries for Global Screens

Docu-mania

Add to my list

by Phoebe Hart

Type: Studies
Subject: Genre > Documentary
Keywords: documentary, globalization
Publishing date: 2024 (January 08, 2024)
Publisher: Lexington Books
Language: English

Relative size

Physical desc.

Hardcover • 240 pages
6 ¼ x 9 ¼ inches (16 x 23.5 cm)

ISBN

978-1-6669-2765-8

User Ratings

(0 vote)

Average rating:

0	rating	= We can do without
0	rating	= Good book
0	rating	= Excellent book
0	rating	= Unique / a reference

Your rating: -

Report incorrect or incomplete information

Book Presentation:
This book explores the industrial and personal challenges faced by filmmakers in bringing the current worldwide craze for documentary films and series to screens small and large. Utilizing a number of case studies drawn from in-depth interviews with acclaimed documentary directors, producers, and screenwriters from around the world, Phoebe Hart offers a thematic analysis to reveal the risks and opportunities for practitioners. Hart examines these themes in the context of current scholarship to provide insight into the modes and methods of making factual screen content as she engages with the documentary form and the marking of it, acquisition of mastery and inspiration, and specific rituals and habits of practice. From the unique vantage point of being a “pracademic” – that is, being both a successful documentary filmmaker and a recognized screen researcher and teacher - Hart ultimately argues for greater support of filmmakers and pursuit of a deeper understanding of creative processes.

About the Author:
Phoebe Hart is associate professor at the Queensland University of Technology and a documentary filmmaker based in Brisbane, Australia.

Press Reviews:
Phoebe Hart's lovely book should live on the bookshelves of scholars, artists, and students around the world who adore the documentary form and want to understand the nuanced innerworkings of the craft. This is a contemporary, accessible volume that champions the voices and motivations of creative nonfiction makers as they chart a future path in the global media marketplace.
-- Caty Borum, executive director, Center for Media and Social Impact at American University; author of Story Movements: How Documentaries Empower People and Inspire Social Change

Phoebe Hart is very well placed to write this book, drawing on her own experiences in industry as well as academia to contextualize what it means to imagine, develop, produce, and distribute a documentary in the contemporary landscape. The focus on meaningful ideas, impactful stories, and innovations in process and form provides an excellent addition to the field. And through interviews with a wide range of practitioners from across the globe, the book really does get to the heart of why documentaries matter.
-- Craig Batty, University of South Australia

This volume offers unexpected insights to the documentary filmmaking process through accounts of an array of different makers. It is a fascinating read which makes an important contribution to documentary film studies as well as the emerging discipline of creative practice research. Highly recommended.
-- Agnieszka Piotrowska, filmmaker and scholar; author of Psychoanalysis and Ethics in Documentary Film

Crafting Contemporary Documentaries and Docuseries for Global Screens: Docu-mania by Phoebe Hart offers a rich and insightful contribution in documentary or factual film studies and pedagogies,

making it a must-read for anyone interested in these fields. The book stands out with its unique approach. It comprises six chapters that exemplify John T. Caldwell's 'industrial reflexivity metaphors' (2008; 2024), used in the book title and chapters. For Hart, "crafting" in documentary film production involves assembling and shaping raw footage into a cohesive and impactful narrative. This involves selecting the most compelling scenes, arranging them in logical sequences, and often adding supplementary materials such as interviews, voiceovers, and music to enhance the storytelling. Thus, crafting is a crucial stage in documentary filmmaking, allowing filmmakers to document and convey their intended message and engage the audience effectively.
― Journal of Media Practice and Education

See the publisher website: Lexington Books

> On a related topic: