February 4, 2017

If you’re going to be hiring an editor soon, you may be happy to know that I’ve done a lot of the vetting for you. I’ve reviewed scores of resumes and chosen the best candidates to train in our unique post-production system. We’re excited to be bringing a few more select documentary projects to completion this year. If you’re interested in exploring a collaboration with one of our talented editors, please contact me for a free consultation. We make a special effort to understand your vision for the film. You can learn more about our approach here: newdocediting.com/accelerated-post-program I also…

January 24, 2017

Need help getting your documentary funded?   Film funding experts Carole Dean and Tom Malloy are returning with their successful Intentional Filmmaking Mastermind Class to show you how to get it done. Carole is the author of “The Art of Film Funding, 2nd Edition: Alternative Financing Concepts” as well as founder of From the Heart Productions. She helped me raise more than $100,000 for my own documentary, and she’s a powerhouse with a big heart. Tom is a successful producer who has raised over $20 million for his own films. Helping you create a funding plan, the 4 month class also…

January 16, 2017

What’s your film’s inciting incident? This is an important question. What’s the catalyst moment that sends your protagonist on a quest, thereby grabbing your viewer’s attention in the first act? To help you answer this question, I’m giving away module #1 of my live seminar, shot at the San Francisco Film Society: newdocediting.com/editing_course1 Here are some examples of an inciting incident: In Doug Block’s acclaimed personal documentary, 51 Birch Street, his mother’s unexpected death and his father’s swift remarriage leads the director on a quest to explore his assumptions about his parents’ “good marriage”. In Murderball, a tough match of…

January 15, 2017

Today I’m going to explain a radical new way to log your footage quickly. Let’s say you have 200 hours of footage and you want to cull your best 30 hours to hand over to an editor. (Disclaimer: this logging system is not recommended if you have funds to hire an editor to watch all your footage.) First, we’re going to jettison the traditional, time-consuming method of logging footage from A – Z, so let go of your perfectionist mindset. Second, try to get all your important interviews transcribed. Transcripts help editors cut more quickly. Third, with transcripts in hand,…

January 11, 2017

A few years ago, I consulted with documentary filmmakers Christopher Rufo and Keith Ochwat. After successfully premiering at AFI Docs, Chris and Keith thought their documentary Age of Champions about the Senior Olympics was going to get some attention from distributors. They ended up receiving measly offers and decided to self-distribute. Over the course of two years they ended up organizing over 3,000 screenings and grossed over $1.5 million in online sales. Chris and Keith have since launched the Filmmaker.MBA, an online community and course teaching documentary filmmakers how to find an audience, distribute their work, and build long-term careers. The course includes video lessons, case…

January 8, 2017

I’ve wanted to go to India for years. Here’s the story of how I’ll be traveling in style in just two weeks to promote a stellar documentary we edited. Last fall I met Mandar Apte, a former Shell engineer who managed their social innovation program. Deeply pained by the ongoing violence in the U.S., this Indian engineer decided to direct a documentary to promote non-violence. But when Mandar first told me he needed to edit his documentary From India With Love within four weeks, I replied that was “impossible”. He agreed to cull his best footage in advance, and we were able…

January 4, 2017

To start off your New Year with a bang, I’m giving away module #9 of my 12-part series The Ultimate Guide to Structuring Your Documentary. You can download this primer on editing a climax scene for free here: newdocediting.com/ultimateguide You’ll learn what it takes to edit a suspenseful and satisfying Act Three.

In case you missed our New Year’s Day announcement, Open Call has now begun for our Accelerated Post™ program. This unique editing system is aimed at providing directors with a talented editor and story consultant at an affordable cost. Depending on where you are in post-production, we’ll finish editing your doc quickly, within 3-10 weeks. I’m now talking with visionary filmmakers who are in–or will soon be entering–post-production. If that’s you and you need a way to finish your film under budget, email me about a free consultation.

December 31, 2016

Happy New Year! I’m excited to announce our new editing program. Accelerated Post is thoughtfully designed to help you edit a compelling, low-budget documentary quickly. I’ve seen so many documentary project stalled because filmmakers don’t have enough funds for post-production. Our Accelerated Post program is aimed at visionary, independent filmmakers who want to cut a standard editing budget by 40-80%. You’ll collaborate with a talented editor schooled in our storytelling principles to understand your vision. See if you qualify for our Accelerated Post program here. I’m accepting applications during the next ten days.

December 26, 2016

Happy early New Year! Below are some of the trends I see emerging in 2017 in the independent documentary world. But first…we have a talented editor coming available in January. Let me know if you are looking for an editor. As you may have noticed, shorter non-fiction formats are becoming more popular, as the ubiquitous screens in our lives vie for our attention. Our story consulting client Tiffany Shlain offers a terrific showcase of this trend in her “Let It Ripple” series of impactful, short documentaries. Tiffany also pioneers two other trends: the movement toward using cinematic purchased footage (think…